Jimmy Neutron: Evil Genius
by lexaleigh
Summary: James Neutron has graduated from MIT and is working for NASA. He's not happy though. He is vengeful. James is going to rule the world. After returning to Retroville to gather supplies from his old lab, he runs into Cindy Vortex, who has just what he needs to take over the world. Rated T for language and suggestive themes. Cover art by: acaciathorn from deviantart. Thanks!
1. Chapter 1

_Author's Note: Hello friends. Here is a revised, revised, and revised again version of the first chapter. Thank you to those who left great feedback to help me improve my writing. I hope this is more satisfying than the original version. Again, no new update yet. I've got some more revising to do. *sigh* it's painful sometimes._

Enjoy!

* * *

James looked at the photo that was taken fifteen years ago. The faded, wrinkled photo was after the first of many adventures he had with his friends in space. He and his old school friends Sheen, Carl, Libby, and Cindy all looked so happy in the picture. That had been a long time ago. Things had changed rather quickly it seemed to James.

Much had happened in the last fifteen years. Through the rest of elementary and middle school, the friends had lots of adventures. While they were in high school, Sheen and Libby dated for a while, but Sheen started messing with the wrong crowd and got into drugs. Libby couldn't stand it. She dumped Sheen and ended up getting early acceptance to a fashion school in New York. Carl had been pretty successful in high school, but despite his good grades, chose to live his life as a llama farmer and moved to Peru with his friend Elke after graduation. Cindy and Jimmy, despite what everyone assumed, never dated. Not once. Cindy had said she was always too busy with her extracurriculars, but spent most weekends at home staring at the genius's house across the street. Jimmy never made excuses. He pretended not to care what people thought. He shut the world out and consumed himself in his work, while taking extra classes at the local college.

James had always wanted more. He wanted out of Retroville, but despite colleges offering him early admission scholarships, his parents said he should stay in high school. "It's an experience you will regret if you don't stay," his mother had said. High school was hell for the genius. He was constantly ridiculed. He found it rather infuriating actually. Anyone who talked to him when he was younger only spoke to him in high school so that he would help them with homework. He felt used and betrayed. Jimmy tried not to care, but due to human nature he wanted to be accepted. Eventually he shut everybody out, including his close friends. A week after graduation, James left Retroville, not a word to anyone, and now it had been eight years and he was back in his old laboratory.

James tossed the photo over his shoulder. He had moved on to bigger things. Better things. Darker things. While college was a much needed improvement over high school, James still felt unfulfilled. He could get over the idiots from high school, but James still felt he had something to prove to everyone who had ever doubted him. He needed a new challenge, something that no one had ever achieved. James kept digging through the dusty boxes unsure of what he was looking for. How did one begin to take over the world? He needed help, and he knew just who to turn to.

James walked out of the lab furiously typing out a message on his phone to his old friend. He figured Sheen was still in town. Sheen had never accomplished much; it wasn't very likely that he had left Retroville.

"Jimmy Neutron," a voice said in that oh-so-familiar way.

James turned around to see a smirk on the face of Cindy Vortex. "It's James actually," he retorted.

"I never thought I'd see you in Retroville again. How long has it been? Eight years?"

James nodded. "Why are you here?" he asked. "I thought you would have left Retroville ages ago."

"I'm just visiting my parents. I live in Boston. I finished up Grad School and started my residency for cancer research," Cindy explained. "What about you? Why did you decide to grace us with your presence?"

"I came back to clean out the lab," James wasn't much for idle conversations.

"Are you working anywhere?"

James sighed. "Yeah, actually, I work for NASA," James stated, which was the truth.

"That's amazing. I always knew you would end up working for NASA," Cindy smiled.

James's phone buzzed. "I've got to go. Good seeing you, Vortex."

"Wait!" Cindy called. James huffed and turned around. "Would you maybe want to grab a drink later?" Cindy asked trying to hide the red beginning to burn her cheeks.

James's stood stunned. He thought he should decline. He had too much work to do, and he felt that he shouldn't try to rekindle any old friendships that he didn't have to. "Sure Vortex. Eight o'clock. We can meet here." James said in spite of his brain telling him otherwise.

"Great! See you later Neutron."

* * *

James opened the door to the Candy Bar, quietly chuckling that Sheen had picked such a childish place to meet. He looked around the room trying to find Sheen. He hadn't seen his old friend since high school. He couldn't look that different, but James couldn't seem to find him.

"Over here, Jimmy," a scruffy looking guy waved. James walked over. Sheen had some stubble on his face, and was wearing wrinkled clothing. James wondered if his friend was still into drugs. In high school, Sheen's friends tried to help after he got addicted, but Sheen was insistent that he didn't have a problem. When Carl tried to get Sheen to admit himself to rehab, Sheen flipped. That's when Libby dumped him and the others just faded out of his life. After that, the whole gang just stopped getting together.

"Hey Sheen. How's it going?" James smiled as he sat down across from this unfamiliar friend. "It's been awhile."

"I'm doing good, Jim. I'm clean, I got my GED, and I started some classes at the community college," Sheen answered.

James nodded, happy that his friend was doing better. He hoped Sheen wouldn't ask what he'd been up to. It didn't feel right to shove his success in his friend's face. "That's good, Sheen. I'm happy for you."

Sheen smiled and nodded. "So what'd you want to meet up for? It's been ages since I've seen you."

James hesitated. What did he want to ask Sheen? He didn't know how to explain why he needed information from him without sounding like a lunatic. "I'm interested in learning more about comic books. You still into those?"

Sheen laughed. "Jimmy Neutron wants to read comic books? I never thought I'd see the day. Are you sure you're not high?"

James smiled, "I'm serious."

"Yeah, I still read them from time to time. What kind are you interested in?"

"Do you have any about villains taking over the world? And maybe with a little bit of a back story?" James hesitated. It sounded silly, but studying science fiction might be his best option.

"I've got lots of those. Why did you say you needed them?"

James held his breath. How did he respond to that? "Um, psychology study. It's a little experiment," James lied through his teeth.

Sheen nodded. "I've got work in a couple of hours, but if you'd like, I can show you what I've got." Sheen stood and James followed.

Sheen lived in a small apartment close to the Candy Bar. The two acquaintances walked in silence. They had never had anything in common, and James began to wonder how they were ever friends. Sheen had been a good test dummy. He feared little and lived fully, until high school, when he spiraled out of control.

James always questioned why Sheen had turned to drugs. James's inventing had slowed by high school, but the "Three Amigops" were still partners in crime for a while. It was after Sheen and Libby started dating that James began to pull away. He felt like he was losing his friends. He tried for a long time to stay connected with his old friends, but it became this constant game of James making plans and everyone bailing. It was also around this time that James began to realize everyone was using him. He began to question everyone's motives. James started to shut everyone out.

After borrowing some comic books from Sheen, James began to leave the small apartment. "It was good seeing you, Jim," Sheen spoke quietly.

James only nodded. He felt a little guilty using his friend like this. Sheen had really turned his life around, and James was going to take it over, because Sheen had helped him.

"Whatever you're really up to, just be careful," Sheen whispered when James didn't respond.

James furrowed his brow in confusion but didn't say anything. What did Sheen mean by that? He couldn't possibly know. James took a breath and said, "Well, I'll see you around I hope. I'll be in Retroville for a few days."

"Make sure you stop by to say hi to Cindy. She's back too, visiting her parents."

"Funny you should mention her. I ran into her on my way to meet you. I'm actually grabbing drinks with her in a couple of hours," James sounded almost excited.

Sheen smiled and muttered something under his breath.

"What was that?" James asked.

"Nothing, just I knew it would happen eventually."


	2. Chapter 2

_Author's Note: Hello friends. New update. Yay! This chapter brinks on a mature rating I think, but I've written it in a way that will keep it in a T rating. I did say in my summary that there would be some language and suggestive themes, so you have been warned. I appreciate all reviews so far, praise and critiques. It was the critiques that made me go back and revise Chapter 1, so if you haven't read the revised version, go do that before reading this chapter. Hopefully it will clear some things up._

Enjoy!

* * *

James stopped by his old house to change clothes for the evening. Despite his resistance, James's parents insisted he stay with them while he was in town. James would have been more comfortable in a hotel, but his mother had gone to so much work. James loved his parents, and he regretted not visiting them after he moved away, but he liked to keep to himself.

He walked up to his old room, and dug through his suitcase for something clean to wear. He changed his shirt and threw on a blazer for good measure. James walked down the stairs and grabbed his car keys.

"Where are you off to?" his mother asked.

"I'm grabbing drinks with Cindy Vortex. She's back visiting her parents," James explained, wondering why he felt the need to give his mother all that information.

"Well you sure look nice," Judy smiled knowingly.

James rolled his eyes and walked toward the front door. "I've got a key to the house, so you don't have to wait up, okay?"

His mother nodded. "Have fun, James. Loosen up a bit. You're too tense and serious now."

"I'll see you later, mom." James closed the door behind him, ultimately crashing into Cindy as she walked up to the front porch.

"Sorry!" Cindy exclaimed obviously flustered. She smoothed the front of her elbow-patched sweater and adjusted her knee length skirt. James watched as the whole ordeal went down. James had to admit she looked good.

Cindy finished fixing herself and stood upright looking at James. "You look nice, Neutron." She smiled, catching him staring at her.

James cleared his throat, "You too, Vortex." He looked away quickly and began walking down the steps to his car. Cindy furrowed her brow, confused at the sudden mood change but followed suit.

James, always being the gentleman, opened the car door for Cindy. She sat down, and he quietly closed the door. Only after sitting down himself and turning the car on, did he realize he didn't know where they were going. "So, which bar are we going to?"

"I was thinking Piano Keys. They have live piano music, and it's not super loud and crazy in there," Cindy suggested. "I want to hear what you've been up to the last eight years."

"I already told you pretty much everything."

"I know you studied nuclear physics at MIT and now you are working for NASA. That doesn't really tell me a whole lot about the past eight years."

"I don't know what else you want to know. Leaving Retroville was one of the best things I've ever done. I'm glad I got out. High school was awful, and the people here suck. I just felt trapped here, you know?"

Cindy sat quiet for a moment. "Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I left Retroville too, but was it really so bad? Surely high school should have been a breeze for you."

"I never said that high school was hard; give me a little credit here. I'm talking about the constant ridicule. I had the opportunity to graduate early, but my mother thought I would be missing out on my high school experience if I did that. I stayed because—," James faded out. He wasn't sure why he had stayed.

Cindy didn't push him to finish that sentence, though she was curious. "I didn't realize high school was that horrible for you. You never acted like there was a problem. I mean, come on Jimmy, we were friends back then. It's not like you were alone."

"I told you, it's James," he muttered.

"Fine, James," Cindy emphasized. "If life was so bad, why did you shut everyone out? Why didn't you talk to anyone?"

"Because!" James nearly shouted. "Who was I supposed to talk to, you? You were so focused on fitting in you wouldn't even give me the time of day."

Cindy was silent. He was right. She had been too concerned about fitting in. In high school her best friend had been dating someone, and she had barely even kissed anybody. Hanging out with Jimmy would have been a "social don't" Libby had told her. "You're right, and for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

James didn't speak, but his face softened slightly as they pulled into the parking lot of the bar. James got out of the car and waited for Cindy to get out. "Let's not fight. We're here to have a good time."

Cindy nodded and followed James into the bar. After showing their IDs they found a table near the back where it was a bit quieter. They sat in silence for a moment. Cindy didn't know what to say. She didn't want James to blow his top again.

"Look, Vortex. I'm sorry for yelling earlier. Can we please just enjoy ourselves?" James tried to get her to talk.

Cindy smiled, "Aren't we a little old to continue this last name charade?"

James smiled back, "Okay, Cindy, but you have to call me James."

"I don't think so. You've always been Jimmy, and you always will be. Unless you prefer 'Nerdtron' instead," Cindy smirked.

"I always was a little partial to 'Nerdtron,'" James laughed. "It was better than 'fudge head' that's for sure."

"I forgot about that one! You got rid of the swirly hair after we started middle school. Traded it in for a cooler look."

"Yeah, a lot of good that did me. I suppose I will always be a genius freak."

"You're not a freak, Jimmy. Genius, yes but freak is taking it a bit far," Cindy defended.

"Can I ask you something?" James started. Before Cindy could answer, the waiter came to take their drink orders. "Order whatever you want, I'm buying," James told Cindy.

"But I invited you."

"But I was rude. Think of it as an apology."

Cindy smiled and ordered a cocktail. James ordered a scotch on the rocks.

"What did you want to ask me?" Cindy asked, leaning on the table.

James cleared his throat, his confidence dwindling. "Why did you invite me here tonight? I mean, I haven't seen you in eight years, and we weren't exactly friends when I left, or ever really."

Cindy blushed. "I don't know, spur of the moment? I missed you, Jimmy. My life was really different after you left. I've never met anyone else like you, and I don't suppose I ever will. You're special. We've been through a lot together, and I miss being around you. I like the competition, and I like you. I always have." Cindy bit her bottom lip as she finished.

James sat silently as the waiter brought their drinks over and set them on the table. He was glad for the interruption so that he could have some time to think. She had always liked him? In what way? Sure they teased and flirted when they were kids, but that was a childish thing. All James had wanted in high school was to spend time with Cindy. He had never wanted to shut her out, but all through school Cindy ignored him, so he assumed she had never cared.

As the waiter walked away, Cindy waited for a response. "I never knew that you felt that way. I liked you too, but I always thought you thought I was a dork. You would have never gone on a date with me," James finally answered.

"Of course I thought you were a dork, that was one of the reasons why I liked you so much," Cindy said. "So you liked me too, huh? Looks like this is long overdue." James smiled and took a swig of his drink.

James and Cindy stayed at the bar late into the night. They each had a few drinks, and caught up on each other's lives. At around midnight, they realized they had been talking for hours, and decided to head out.

"I wasn't expecting to drink so much. I don't think either of us is okay to drive home," James said as they exited the bar. He pulled out his phone to call a cab.

"We can go to my hotel room. I'm staying just right down the road. Please don't take that the wrong way," Cindy smiled.

James smirked and followed Cindy down the road. "You got a hotel? My parents insisted that I stay with them. I would much rather stay in a hotel," James commented.

"My parents said the same thing, but I told them that it would be easier if I stayed in a hotel so they wouldn't have to get the guest room ready, in other words my awful pink room," Cindy replied with a giggle.

As they entered the hotel lobby, Cindy dug for her key in her purse. James pushed the elevator call button. As they walked into the elevator, Cindy asked James, "So you never really explained why you came back to Retroville. Obviously it's more than just visiting your parents, since you never did that while you were in college."

"I told you, I'm cleaning out the lab," James said.

"Yeah, I didn't believe that for a second," Cindy replied.

James sighed. "Fine, I'm planning something, and I needed to get some of my old lab stuff to help me out," James explained. It was as much of the truth as anyone was going to get.

"What are you planning?" Cindy asked as she slid the key into the door of her hotel room.

"Top secret. It's for work."

"There's nothing I can do to get a little hint?" Cindy whispered, the effects of the alcohol inhibiting her thoughts as she stepped closer to James and closed the door.

"Isn't this taking it the wrong way?" James whispered as he backed up.

"Neutron, it's been a long eight years. Don't tell me you never thought about it, about us," Cindy held her gaze and followed James as he backed up, right into the bed.

James knew she was right. This is what he had always wanted, and the alcohol flowing through his system was definitely helping boost his confidence. He leaned in and his lips lightly brushed Cindy's. He wrapped his hands around her waist as he sat down on the bed. The blonde straddled his legs as she leaned in for a longer kiss.

Cindy kissed James with full force, entangling her fingers in his thick brown hair. James reciprocated by running his hands up her sides, making her shudder with delight. James knew what he was doing. He had helped plenty of girls with homework at MIT, and they gladly returned the favor in their own way.

Cindy removed her beanie, letting her hair fall into her face. She had a lustful look in her eyes. James immediately ran his hands through her golden locks. Cindy slid the blazer off of the genius's shoulders and tossed it to the side. She then pushed James lightly until he was on his back. James snaked his hands to Cindy's hips as she began to leave a hot trail of kisses down his jaw to his neck.

"Damn, Vortex," James whispered breathlessly. "You really want to know about my experiments."

"Ah, a clue," Cindy smiled against his neck. "All you told me before was that you were planning something. Now you're experimenting. This is working," she teased.

James slid his hands from her waist up Cindy's sweater and felt her soft, warm skin create goosebumps with every touch. His hands slid higher until he felt the lace on the back of her bra. He stopped. Was this right? They both had a bit to drink, and James had to be careful. He couldn't let his plans slip out, even if his plans were very minimal.

"What's the matter, Neutron?" Cindy whispered sliding her hands up under his shirt while she nibbled on his earlobe.

James shuddered. Then again, he was planning on taking over the world. He might as well have some fun. James sat up and grabbed the edges of Cindy's sweater and pulled it up over her head. Immediately connecting his lips to her neck he worked his way down to her chest. Cindy sighed contentedly as James's lips reached the swell of her breasts. Cindy tugged at James's shirt urging him to take it off. He obliged, but in the process picked Cindy up and laid her on the bed.

"Always has to be on top," Cindy chuckled before James began exploring her mouth with his own. He smiled as he kissed her, and moved his hand to her leg running it up her thigh. Cindy sucked in a quick breath at the sudden movement of James's hand. She grabbed at his hand, surprised at how forward he was.

"Come on, Vortex. Who said you get to have all the fun?" James practically growled.

"Just give me a second," Cindy replied scooting out from underneath James. James watched as she took off her shoes and the tights she was wearing. She rummaged through a suitcase before turning around. She held a condom in between her fingers "Okay, Neutron, where were we?" Cindy said in a sultry voice.

James stood and walked over to Cindy. He cupped her chin and pulled her in for a kiss. Her arms snaked their way up around his neck as James bent his knees slightly so he could pick her up. Cindy assisted by wrapping her legs around his waist.

"This is the part where you tell me more about your plan," the blonde encouraged moving her lips to his neck.

"It involves the world, and what I plan to do with it," James explained, too entranced by his fantasy girl to realize what he was doing. He laid her down on the bed and slid his hand up her skirt.

"Mmm. And what exactly do you have planned to do with it?" Cindy sighed breathlessly.

"It's a secret. I can't tell you."

"Come on Neutron." Cindy sat up and undid the button on James's pants. She slowly pulled the zipper down and looked up at the man she had always dreamed about. She bit her bottom lip trying to look as innocent as possible. "You can trust me."

James sighed in frustration. He knew that Cindy would never understand why he needed to take over the world. Cindy was always on the side of good. She was doing cancer research for Christ's sake! She never had a reason to be bad. James had grown up being made fun of and had never really fit in. He deserved happiness.

James felt his pants slide down his legs to the floor. Cindy was kneeling on the bed in front of him, a cheeky smile on her face.

He couldn't help himself. He pulled his feet out of the pants gathered around his ankles and crawled up onto the bed as Cindy scooted back toward the pillows.

* * *

James woke up with a slight headache. He looked next to him in the unfamiliar room and saw Cindy sleeping. Her hair was disheveled and her full lips were in a slight pout that James thought was adorable. He looked around the room trying to find any of his strewn clothing. His boxers were the last thing that had come off. They couldn't be that hard to find.

James shifted as quietly as he could out of the bed, but Cindy woke anyway. She ran her fingers through her hair, smoothing it down and smiled at James.

"Good morning, Neutron. I never would have thought I would wake up to see you like this," Cindy said through a yawn.

"Neither did I, Vortex," James replied, still scanning the room for his things.

"What's your rush, Neutron? Do you need to go save the world or something?" Cindy teased.

James chuckled nervously as he pulled up his boxers. "Not exactly. I've only got a few days in town before I need to leave, and I've got to get things in order before I do."

"I wish you would just tell me what you're doing. I could probably help you."

"I told you, it's top secret."

"Come on, Jimmy," Cindy smiled slyly and crawled over to James's side of the bed.

James leaned down and kissed her deep. He pulled away and teased, "If I told you, then I'd have to kill you." He walked away from the bed and gathered the rest of his clothes. "Do you mind if I shower here? I've got a lot to do today, and I'd rather not explain my evening to my mother."

Cindy simply nodded. James headed toward the bathroom, but left the door open, in case Cindy needed to use it. Cindy stepped out from under the tangle of sheets and put on her bathrobe. She began picking up her wrinkled clothing when she heard the shower turn on. Cindy threw her dirty clothes back in her suitcase and pulled clean clothing out of the dresser. She walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth.

"Are you going to need a ride back to your parents?" James asked through the shower curtain.

Cindy spit the remains of the toothpaste into the sink. "Yeah, if you don't mind."

"How soon can you be ready? I'd really like to get going."

"Well, I need to shower too, so if you're in that big of a rush, I'll just take a cab."

The water turned off. James's hand reached out and grabbed a towel. "Now I feel like an ass. I'll drive you." He stepped out of the shower with the towel wrapped around his waist. "Shower's all yours."

Cindy ogled at James's toned body as he passed her and walked out of the bathroom. She couldn't believe that she had spent the night with him. Being with Jimmy was what Cindy had always wanted. Something felt off though. He had claimed that he liked her too, but he sure wasn't acting like it. Cindy began to feel slightly used, cheap. Like just a good fuck. She quickly finished her shower and stepped out, her attitude had shifted dramatically. Cindy dried her hair, not caring that James was itching to leave. He hadn't said anything, so she styled her hair as well. She walked out of the bathroom and James was gone. _That son of a bitch!_ Cindy really felt used now.

Just as Cindy was finishing up her make-up, she heard the door to her hotel room open. She thought it was the maid and walked out to tell her she wasn't ready yet, but came face to face with James, who had brought back coffee and bagels.

"I wasn't sure how you liked your coffee, so it's black. I brought some sugar packets though," James said absent-mindedly digging through the paper sack.

Cindy was speechless. She felt a little guilty now for what she had thought. James looked at her waiting for an answer. "I. uh. Black is fine, thanks," Cindy stammered reaching for the coffee. "You didn't have to do that," Cindy whispered.

James shrugged. "I don't mind. Are you almost ready to go?" James asked looking at Cindy's short bathrobe.

Cindy nodded and quickly got dressed. They headed out of the hotel and wandered over to the bar where James's car was parked. They didn't speak as they walked. James opened the car door for Cindy, walked around, sat down, and started the car. They drove in silence. There was nothing to say. Cindy felt guilty for what she had thought that morning, and James felt guilty for not telling Cindy the truth.

James pulled in to the Vortex's driveway and turned off the car. They both sat there in more silence. Cindy started getting out of the car. "Cindy," James said quietly. It almost sounded like a question. Cindy paused. "Thanks," is all James said.

"For what?"

"For everything. I really needed to get out of my own head. When you invited me for drinks, I almost said no, but I'm glad I didn't. I needed a night out."

"James," the unfamiliar name still felt weird in her mouth. "I don't know why you're back in town, but I'm really glad I ran into you. I think we both needed this. All of it." She stared at James as she spoke the last words.

James leaned over and kissed Cindy lightly. "You can call me Jimmy."

Cindy smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Okay, 'Nerdtron.'"

* * *

 _A/N: Well that escalated quickly!_

 _Some of you may be concerned as to James's character development. I have briefly mentioned some of his past struggles, but have not gone into detail. Keep in mind: James is a villain type in this story, so there needs to be some secrecy for the big reveal later. :) Also keep in mind though that James doesn't really know how to be a villain. He has lots of guilt and regret, that will be revealed more as the story moves along. So I guess really he's more of an anit-hero type._


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's Note: Hello friends. New update. Yay! I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this chapter. About a month ago, I lost an entire month's worth of writing as well as revisions and edits, and this chapter had a lot of revisions. I like to think that I got them all again, but who knows?_

 _Thanks for the reviews. Let me know what you think about this chapter. It has some plot development, and a lot of character development._

Enjoy!

* * *

James was furiously working in his lab. He had read every comic book that Sheen had given him, taking notes on anything that could be of importance. He had discovered that taking over the world would require a lot more than just himself. Who could he trust to help him though?

James began daydreaming and opened up his old Instagram account. He hadn't used Instagram since his undergrad years, but searched Cindy's username. She was the only one that James wanted to trust, but couldn't. She would never help him. Once her page loaded, James smiled as he looked at the first picture. It was of the both of them last night at the bar. She had captioned the selfie with, "Look who I found back in the old town! #eightyearstoolong" James scrolled to the next photo. It was dated just about a week ago. The caption read, "Isolating more cancer cells. One step closer every day."

James stopped. If he could get his hands on some stem cells, he could grow them in his lab to create a super gene. In theory once the gene was injected into a body, the being could gain a super ability, depending on how the DNA was mutated. The only question was how he was going to get the cells from Cindy.

James closed the Instagram page and thought he should start searching for the hospital that Cindy was working at. He sat with the Google page opened and drummed his fingers on the desk, unsure of where to start. He and Cindy had caught up on a lot of things the night before, but they hadn't talk about the workplace. James picked up his phone and clicked on Cindy's number.

 _"Hello?"_

"Hey, Cindy. It's James,"

 _"Hey, what's going on?"_

"Not much, just finishing up some of the stuff I had to work on. I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight."

 _"No, I've got an early plane to catch the next morning though, why?"_

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to go get dinner or something, but if you've got a flight to catch—,"

 _"I could do dinner, I don't think I'd be up for a repeat of last night though,"_ Cindy laughed.

James chuckled, "Of course not, I just wanted to see you one more time before we both left. It really was great seeing you again, Vortex."

Cindy was quiet for a moment. Never in her life had she thought she'd hear those words come from the genius across the street. _"I'll take you up on that offer. What time should we meet?"_

James looked at his watch. It was four o'clock. "Should we say six? I've got a few more things to get done. I'd be done earlier, but it's this whole thing with mutated cells that I'm having a hard time with," James lied.

 _"Mutated cells? You mean like cancer cells? What do you need to know about that?"_ Cindy asked intrigued.

"Well," James started, trying to come up with a good reason. "We are trying to figure out what certain radiations do to cells. How they mutate them, and the effects they have."

 _"And NASA needs to know this because…?"_

"I've already told you too much. Remember my top secret mission?"

 _"Right,"_ Cindy replied sarcastically. _"Well, if you need help, you know I work with cancer cells pretty much on a daily basis."_

"I'd have to get my boss to approve of outside help," James lied again. "But I would definitely consider it," His plan was coming along nicely. "Anyway, I'll pick you up around six, sound good?"

 _"I'll see you then, Neutron. Bye."_ Cindy hung up the phone and sighed. She couldn't wait to see James.

James closed out the internet tabs on his computer. He smiled to himself. World domination was just at his fingertips. After he got ahold of the cells he'd just have to modify the genes to mutate the way he wanted, and find some test dummies. James began digging through more boxes as he made mental blueprints in his head for a radiation gun to help the cells mutate.

A little while later there was a light knock on the laboratory door. James closed out the images on his computer and switched to camera mode. It was Cindy. James looked at his watch and saw it was a quarter after six. He muttered under his breath and clicked the microphone. "Hey, Cindy. My apologies, I lost track of the time."

 _"No problem. Should I come back later?"_ Cindy asked into the speaker.

"No, I'm finished. I just have to clean up a bit. Why don't you come on down?" James said unlocking the door.

Cindy shrugged and walked in. As she walked down the steps she jokingly asked, "What, not more chute?"

"I didn't think it would be appreciated as much as when we were kids," James smiled as he stood up to greet her.

"My ass is definitely grateful not to be bruised right now," Cindy laughed.

James chuckled. "Have a seat. I just need to tidy up." He motioned toward the tattered couch that had been in the lab for years.

"I can't believe you still own this couch. It's so old, and to be honest it stinks," Cindy commented as she sat in his lab chair instead.

"Yeah, well, this is the first time anyone's been down here in eight years. Things tend to get old and smelly," James replied before turning around to see Cindy sitting in his chair. "And just what do you think you are doing?"

Cindy smiled coyly. "What are you talking about?"

"Off. Now. Vortex," James stormed over to her. It wasn't so much the chair anymore, it was that she had access to everything he'd just been doing on his computer.

"You're still uptight about people sitting in this chair, huh?" Cindy stood. "Sorry, I just thought we'd move passed those childish quarrels." She walked behind the chair and pushed it over to James. "Here. The throne for the genius king," she teased.

James rolled his eyes, but smiled. "Same old Vortex." James sat down and put his computer in sleep mode.

"Well I'm not entirely the same," Cindy said walking around to face James. "I grew taller, though not as much as you. And I graduated from Harvard. And the old me would never have thought of even kissing you," Cindy smiled.

"What about the Island?"

"Purely circumstantial. And I'm talking about a real kiss, not some childish spin-the-bottle type kiss." Cindy leaned down and locked her fingers in James's hair as her lips connected with his, catching him off guard. Although shocked, he wasn't displeased. James placed his hand on her waist pulling the girl closer to him. She straddled the genius's lap.

"I thought… we were just… going to dinner," James said in between kisses.

"Right," Cindy replied, composing herself. "But that was the type of kiss I was talking about." She climbed off of James and smoothed her hair. "Also I still got to sit in your chair," Cindy smiled.

James rolled his eyes and grabbed his car keys. He followed Cindy out of the lab and locked the door behind him. "Do you like sushi? There's a great sushi bar right outside of town."

"Yeah, I like sushi. Are you talking about Paper Crane? That place is great."

"Perfect, because that's where we're going for dinner." James stated as they got in the car.

"Ooh, suddenly you're all domineering," Cindy smirked.

"What do you mean suddenly? I've always been like this."

"I don't know. I mean it's been eight years. People change. We just talked about this. You always felt like you had to be in charge, but you used to be a kind-hearted kid. You are all moody now," Cindy explained.

"Is that such a bad thing? Life wasn't flowers and rainbows for me. It takes a toll on you."

"No, I wouldn't say it's particularly bad, it's just not the Jimmy that I knew and crushed on."

"You didn't seem to mind last night," James muttered.

"Last night was…" Cindy didn't know how to finish that sentence.

They drove in silence for a while. Cindy was embarrassed that she had even mentioned the personality change. She should have known that last night would have been brought up. James didn't want to say anything to upset Cindy. He needed to stay on her good side if he wanted access to the cancer cells.

James pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. "…amazing," Cindy said. It was the first thing either of them had said in several minutes.

"What?" James asked, confused.

Cindy sighed. "Last night was amazing. I don't know why, but I've always craved your attention."

James sat silent for a moment. Why did she keep doing this to him? He already felt bad that he was using her to get what he wanted, but she continued to make him feel guilty without her even knowing it. "Cindy," James finally spoke. "I… umm…" he didn't know what to say.

"There's that flustered Neutron that I always liked," Cindy winked. She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Let's go get dinner."

James stared as Cindy got out of the car. Was she lying just to get him to be flustered? Or did she really always crave his attention? Either way he needed to find out. He got out of the car and walked quickly to catch up to Cindy.

* * *

Dinner proceeded normally if not on the quiet side, especially from James. He still couldn't figure out if Cindy was teasing him or not.

"You're quiet, Neutron," Cindy said setting down her chopsticks.

James shrugged. "Nothing to say I suppose."

"You're not that hard to read. Something's on your mind. The question is, are you going to tell me, or am I going to have to force it out of you?" Cindy smiled.

James rolled his eyes. "I talked to my boss," he lied. "He said that he doesn't want any outside help, but would love it if your research center could donate some stem cells. Do you think that would be possible?"

"I'd have to ask. I've only started my residency," Cindy replied. Her phone began to buzz. "Excuse me," Cindy said standing up and answering the phone. She walked away.

James started to feel some guilt hang on his conscience. Everything Cindy had said this evening was true. He had changed. He used to be a fun-loving, carefree, kind-hearted kid who wanted to better the world through science. After he started high school and into his college years he was bombarded with hate from many people. People didn't believe in him. They didn't trust him and his inventions. Many thought he was too destructive as a child. He was grateful NASA could see passed all of those things and saw the potential of an eager young MIT graduate.

Cindy came back to the table finishing up her phone conversation. "Right… You got it. I'll see you Monday. Oh, and while I've got you. I'm here with one of my old friends who is a NASA representative…" James's ears perked up. Cindy winked at him. "James Neutron… You've heard of him? ... Great! Anyway, he's working on a new project in regards to radiation, and would love to have some stem cells donated for experimentation… Right… Okay, I'll let him know. Thanks so much… Goodbye." Cindy hit end on her phone and sat back down. She didn't say a word.

"Well?" James asked in anticipation.

"What?" Cindy smiled coyly.

James was growing frustrated. "Stop toying with me, Vortex."

Cindy rolled her eyes. "My boss has to get some samples prepared, but we can have them ready by next Friday. The catch is you're going to have to come up to Boston to get them. She doesn't want to ship them as they can get damaged."

James smiled. "Cindy you're the best!"

"There's a phrase I never thought I'd hear coming from your mouth," Cindy laughed. "You're lucky my boss likes me."

"You could say that again," James mumbled.

James and Cindy finished up their dinner, paid, and headed back to their old neighborhood.

"Did you mean what you said earlier?" James asked, hands nervously gripping the steering wheel.

"What are you talking about?"

"When you said you 'always craved my attention.'"

Cindy laughed. "Someone thinks highly of himself."

"I'm serious. Not in a conceded way. I just want to know if there ever could have been…" his voice trailed off.

Cindy sat silent for a moment. She had always wondered too. How would their lives be different if they had gotten together in high school? Or even if they had stayed friends in high school? Cindy took in a breath and answered, "In a way, yes. In high school I was afraid of what people would think. Everyone knew that I liked you, but I was trying to prove them wrong. I don't know why I cared what people thought, but by the time I realized that I didn't actually care about what people thought of me, I was too late. You wouldn't even look at me. I knew that I had hurt you, but I was afraid to apologize because I didn't think you would want to be friends again."

James didn't respond right away. He needed some time to think. Cindy felt ashamed of her past mistakes.

As they pulled into the driveway, James finally answered. "For the record, it's never too late." He got out of the car and headed over to the clubhouse. He was angry at himself. His stupid ego was always getting the better of him. Had he just been honest with his friends and not shut people out, his life would be so different. He might actually feel successful.

He fumbled with his keys trying to find the clubhouse key in the dark. As he was about to give up and pull a strand of hair off his head, he heard rustling behind him. He turned around to see Cindy struggle through the overgrowth in front of the clubhouse. James sighed and walked over to help her through.

"Thanks," Cindy acknowledged tucking a stray hair behind her ear. "Why did you take off? You didn't even give me a chance to reply, or say goodbye." She sounded hurt. "I hope you're right that's it's never too late. Because I…I don't want to imagine my life without you. Ugh, that sounded a lot less cheesy in my head."

James's stone face broke into a smile. He grabbed Cindy's hand and pulled a strand of his hair, opening the lab door, the ever famous VOX welcomed him as the two entered. "Want to use the chute? For old times' sake?"

Cindy nodded in excitement and followed James over to the secret opening. "I'll go first," James said excitedly. He hadn't used the chute in years. "Wait 'til I tell you to go." He jumped down and landed with a thud. "Fuck! That hurt!" Cindy heard him yell. She giggled. "Okay, your turn," James hollered up the chute.

Cindy wiped her clammy palms on her pants and tried to ease her nerves. She jumped over the opening and landed with a smack on top of James. "Oh my god! Are you okay? You told me I could go," Cindy said scrambling to get up.

"No, it was my fault. When you didn't come down right away, I thought you had changed your mind, so I peeked up the chute to see if you were coming. Just really bad timing is all."

"I'll say." Cindy lent her hand to James to help him up. James winced; he could practically feel the bruises forming all over.

Cindy gave James a sympathy grin and placed her hand on his cheek, leaned in, and kissed him lightly. She wandered further into the lab and looked at all the dust collected inventions. James followed Cindy and watched her as she stared at everything in awe. "It seems like we did all these things yesterday, the memories are so vivid," Cindy said as she looked up at the old hover car.

"I haven't used this stuff in years. When we all stopped hanging out I just kind of put all of this stuff away. They had too many memories."

"Why did we all stop getting together? We always had a lot of fun, even when our lives were in danger," Cindy asked.

James replied quietly, "I don't know about you guys, but after Sheen and Libby started dating, I felt like every time I had a new invention to test, or had some plans, you all bailed on me. Sheen was always 'too busy' with Libby. Carl tried for a while, but when Elke moved to the states that quickly ended. And you just never replied to my texts."

"Yeah, that goes back to my whole trying to fit in phase. If it's any consolation, Libby was 'too busy' for me too. She always said we would hang out on the weekends, but she always bailed on me."

"Really? At school you two always seemed like the best of friends," James replied, shocked.

Cindy nodded. "I think she felt bad for me. It was pretty obvious that she was popular and I wasn't. She was drop dead gorgeous, dating the soccer star, and was always up on the latest trends. And there I was: no make-up, dateless, and wearing t-shirts, jeans, and Vans."

"I forgot that Sheen was pretty popular. I always wondered what happened," James said.

Cindy fidgeted uncomfortably. "Um…"

"Do you know what happened?"

"Libby noticed Sheen start the down spiral right around the time you stopped trying to contact us. Sheen told her that he felt bad that he never hung out with you. He said he tried to reach out to you, but you never responded. When you stopped contacting him he was heartbroken. You were his idol. He thought that he could achieve anything if he had a friend like you. One of his sleazy teammates introduced him to some drugs, and well, you know the rest," Cindy explained.

James was shocked. "I had no idea. It's all my fault."

"No, it's not Jimmy. How were you to know? That was one of Sheen's most private thoughts. He shared it with Libby and me because he didn't know what else to do. He felt awful for abandoning you. We all did. There's a little fault in everyone."

"Can we talk about something else, please?" James said crossly.

Cindy walked over to the couch, dusted off a spot, and sat down. "Remember when we all had super powers?" she tried to change the subject.

"Yeah, you guys all had awesome powers, and I was orange and angry."

"Well, yeah, but when we were all on the verge of death you used that amazingly huge brain of yours to help us. You got us out of a lot of trouble back in the day."

"I also got us into that trouble to start with," James said sitting down next to Cindy.

"That's the fun of it though. Our lives would have been so boring without you in it."

"Your life would have been normal without me in it."

"Normal life is boring," Cindy sighed. "Our adventures were the best part of my childhood, always whisking off to a new place just to prove you wrong." She smiled lightening the mood.

"Excuse me? Prove me wrong?" James defended turning to face is old rival. "If I do recall, Vortex, it was I who proved you wrong most of the time."

"That's all I needed to hear. That I was right. At least part of the time."

James smiled as he realized his error. His face turned red with embarrassment. "I walked right into that one."

Cindy smiled and stood up. She wandered over to his computer chair and eyed him over her shoulder with a sly smile. She made a big show of taking a seat even wriggling her butt as she sat down. James sat on the couch: arms crossed, eyebrow cocked, a pretend look of annoyance on his face. Since he didn't say anything, Cindy spun around and tried to wake the computer up from sleep mode. James's face grew into a panic. "Cindy, wait. Don't—"

"Just kidding," Cindy winked at James.

"God, Cindy. You can be so infuriating."

"I was just joking. Lighten up." Cindy stood, clearly seeing that she had crossed the line.

"I'm sorry, I just…" James sat in his lab chair. "I think you better go. It was nice seeing you again." He turned away from Cindy.

Cindy stood there, somewhat stunned. "Oh. Okay. Well, goodbye, James. I suppose I'll be in contact with you about the cells."

James didn't respond. He didn't turn around. He only moved when he heard the door whoosh closed as Cindy exited the lab.

James stood and walked over to his shelf full of old inventions. "I need to stay focused," he mumbled to himself. "No more distractions. Here it is." He pulled out a beaker that was sealed off with a cork and had been tucked away for many years. James brushed the dust off the container and saw his old iconic symbol and the label: "Megalomanium."

* * *

 _A/N: For those of you who have read The Other Side of Tomorrow (which I do recommend reading), no, that is not where my story is headed. The next chapter explains what James plans to use the Megalomanium for. He does not, let me say again, does not use it on himself to take over the world. That's too easy for him, and frankly, too easy for me as a writer. This story is being written as a way to challenge myself and to grow as a writer. I'm not going to take the easy way out. I would love to hear your predictions._


	4. Chapter 4

_Author's Note: Hello friends. New update. Yay! This is another chapter that took some reconstituting, from the great computer crash of 2016. I feel like this chapter is a bit rushed, but if I dwelled too long on James's trip and to Boston, it would be boring and a waste of time. This chapter gets a lot of plot development, and gets into more of the story line. Let me know what you think.  
_

Enjoy!

* * *

"This stuff is pretty powerful," James said to himself as he examined a drop of Megalomanium under his microscope. "I'll have to dilute it. I don't want to go too crazy with power. I just want enough to stay focused on the task. Using Megalomanium to take over the world is too easy. I need a challenge, but dammit if I let Cindy Vortex distract me. Now, how do I dilute this stuff?"

There was a knock on the laboratory door. James flipped his computer screen to camera mode and saw Cindy holding a paper in her hands. James was tempted to let her in, but thought better of it and chose to ignore her all together.

 _"Look, James. I know you're in there. I don't know what I did last night to upset you so much, but I am sorry,"_ Cindy began, her voice projecting over the speakers. _"I just wanted to thank you for dinner last night, and say goodbye before I leave. When you're ready to come to Boston, give me a call. I'd be happy to have you stay with me instead of in an overpriced hotel. I've got an extra bed, and my place is super close to the hospital. At least think about it. It was really great seeing you and catching up."_ She placed the paper under the doormat and walked away.

James had been listening and watching the whole time. He needed to fix the Megalomanium, and fast. He was fighting himself not to run after Cindy and apologize for last night.

After several minutes, James stood and walked up to retrieve whatever it was Cindy had left under the doormat. As he reached the top of the stairs he had a thought on how to dilute the Megalomanium. If he mixed in some Adderall, it would put more of an emphasis on the focusing instead of the power, but still leave enough of the power drug to keep himself focused on the specific task.

James picked up the paper under the doormat, wiped some dirt off of it and opened it up. It was Cindy's Boston address along with the hospital's phone number and address. At the bottom of the page, written in Cindy's curly handwriting, " _Thanks for always being there, even when I didn't deserve it."_

James folded the paper and tucked it into his pocket. He locked the laboratory door and headed over to Sheen's place.

* * *

James knocked on the scuffed wooden door of Sheen's apartment. The smell of marijuana and cigarettes wafted through the hallway. If Sheen wanted to get away from that lifestyle, this was definitely not the place he should be living.

James knocked on the door again thinking that he should have called to make sure Sheen would be home. The door was opened by Sheen who looked like he had just woken up from a nap.

"Hey, Jim. How's it going?" Sheen asked through a yawn.

"Hi, Sheen. Sorry, didn't mean to wake you. I just wanted to return the comic books," James replied handing over the comics.

"Thanks, man. Did you get what you needed from them?"

"Yeah, I did. Thanks," James looked anxious.

"Are you okay, Jimmy? You look pale," Sheen asked. "Do you want to come in?" James nodded as Sheen moved out of the way. "Have a seat. I'll get you a glass of water."

James sat on the tattered couch, and waited for Sheen.

"Here," Sheen said handing James the glass. "Are you sure you're okay? You look really nauseous."

"I'm really sorry, Sheen."

"Sorry for what?"

"Everything. I mean, I feel so unfulfilled, but when I think of all the shit you went through, it makes me realize my problems are so minuscule."

"You don't have to apologize. My poor life choices shouldn't make your problems any less valuable to you."

"Look, don't get mad, but Cindy told me about what happened in high school to you. I can't help but think that it's all my fault"

"That's right, you had a date with Cindy. How'd that go?" Sheen asked, smiling suggestively, ignoring the comment.

"It wasn't a date. It was two old friends catching up," James replied.

"Fine, how did, whatever it was, go with Cindy?"

"We went to the bar and had a good conversation. It was a lovely evening. Now I have a favor to ask you Sheen," James said ultimately avoiding the question.

"Don't give me that. You went out with the girl you've always liked, and all you're going to tell me is that you had a 'lovely evening'? What's wrong with you?!" Sheen nearly shouted.

"Sheen, we're not kids anymore. I don't have to tell you anything. Now, about that favor."

"You're not getting off that easy, Jim," Sheen eyed James.

"Fine! We went to the bar, had a bit to drink, and may have ended up in her hotel room," James gave in.

"Seriously? Dude, I thought you would have just kissed her, but you're not foolin' around!" Sheen looked impressed. "Crap! I'm late for work. Sorry Jim, I've got to go. The spare key is in the bowl on the counter, you can let yourself out whenever. See ya!" Sheen ran out the door.

James was left in silence. _This is almost too easy_. James thought to himself. He stood and wandered over to the dirty bathroom. He opened the medicine cabinet and found a half full bottle of Adderall he knew Sheen still had to take. He took half, knowing Sheen could never tell the difference, placed to bottle exactly as he found it, and let himself out of Sheen apartment. James headed back to his lab. He had one week to create and perfect his new form of Megalomanium. One week before he flew to Boston to get the cells he needed. One week before he saw Cindy Vortex again.

* * *

After visiting Retroville, James flew back home and had been furiously working in his NASA lab for three days. After several attempts, and over a dozen power hungry lab rats, James thought he finally found the right dosage of Adderall and Megalomanium. He made the new drug in pill form; easier to travel with than explaining why he had a bunch of medical needles. James was ready to put the drug to a test on himself, but didn't want to waste any of the pills. The disadvantage of adding the Adderall was that now the Megalomanium's effects wear off after several hours. He didn't have any more Adderall, and didn't dare go back to Sheen's. The test would just have to wait until he got to Boston.

James picked up his phone and called Cindy. It was time to man up and finally accept her offer of hospitality.

 _"Hello?"_

"Hi, Cindy. It's James."

 _"James Neutron. Never thought I'd hear from you again. Oh wait. Let me guess. You just want to know if I'm still going to give you those cells? To be honest, yes. A promise is a promise, even if you—"_

"Can you stop talking for, like, one minute?" James was trying to not let Cindy get on his nerves.

 _"O-kay. Sorry?"_

"Look, I just wanted to apologize for how I acted last time we saw each other. I might have overreacted a bit, and—"

 _"A bit? I thought you were going to rip my face off."_

James took a deep breath, trying to stay calm. "And I just wanted to know if your offer still stands for a place to stay when I get to Boston." There was silence on the other line. "Cindy? I know I was an ass, but—"

 _"You could say that again,"_ Cindy scoffed.

"You know what, never mind. I don't need a place to stay that bad. I'll just see you when I get to Boston."

 _"Jimmy, wait. I'm sorry. People don't change much after all, I guess. We're both just as stubborn as we always were. I mean, here you are, swallowing your pride and apologizing, and I'm being snarky and interrupting you. I think we both—"_

"Get to the point, Vortex."

 _"Yes, you are more than welcome to stay with me. I'll do you one better as well: let me pick you up from the airport. What time does your flight get in?"_

"Wow, thanks, Vortex. That's totally unnecessary though."

 _"Nonsense. When does your flight get in?"_

"My flight is supposed to get in at four pm on Thursday."

 _"Perfect, I'll see you then. Bye Nerdtron,"_ Cindy teased.

"See ya, Vortex," James sighed, rolling his eyes as he ended the call.

* * *

The plane pulled into the terminal and the sound of seatbelts being clicked off and people shuffling about filled James's ears. He was finally in Boston, and was finally going to get what he needed to finish his plans.

James wandered through the terminals, until he found his way to baggage claim, where Cindy was waiting for him. He looked around trying to find her. He was getting anxious to see her, until he remembered he needed to take his Power Pill (that's what he decided to call it).

Finally, after several minutes, James saw Cindy smiling and waving at him. She held a sign like a limo driver that said "Nerdtron." He smiled and rolled his eyes as he wandered over to her. "Hey, Vortex. Thanks for the sign."

"Hey, yourself," Cindy smiled. "I thought you would like it." Cindy gave James a long hug, to which he was shocked and took too long to respond. Cindy pulled away. "Sorry. I thought—"

"No, I'm sorry. I'm being awkward. Thanks for picking me up."

"Happy to. Let's get going," Cindy said.

James followed Cindy out to her car. He was barely listening to her as she babbled on about something. He thought that he should have taken his Power Pill as soon as he got off the plane.

To be honest, James felt exhausted. He had barely slept in the last few days as he tried to perfect the Power Pills. All he wanted to do was fall asleep, but knowing Cindy, she would have plans in mind.

"How long has it been since you've been back in Boston?" Cindy asked.

"A few months I guess. I got hired by the Goddard Space Flight Center a month before graduation, so I moved to Maryland to start work. My professors allowed me to finish my classwork online. I came back for graduation, and that was it. I didn't even want to walk at graduation, but my parents insisted," James replied.

"I know the feeling. Part of me thought it was a great opportunity to walk but another part of me thought, 'what's the point?' In the end, I'm glad I walked though."

"Me too, I guess."

"Are you hungry? We can go get something to eat," Cindy asked as they entered the parking garage.

"Honestly, Vortex, I'm really tired. I kind of just want to take a nap," James replied sheepishly.

Cindy laughed, "Okay old man. That's fine, I'll just head home. We can have a late dinner or something."

"Thanks, Cindy."

When they reached Cindy's apartment, James was practically asleep. Cindy tapped him lightly and he jolted awake. "Sheesh, calm down there, Neutron. It's just my apartment building." James face turned red as he unbuckled his seatbelt and grabbed his one duffle bag. He followed Cindy into an elevator.

"Not to sound nosey and rude, but how do you afford this place on your own?" James asked as they entered the apartment.

Cindy sighed, "Well, I have a roommate, but she's getting married, so she practically lives with her fiancé. She's already paid for the rest of the lease here, but that's why I was visiting my parents. I needed to borrow some money so that I can find a new apartment. Living in the city is so expensive."

James nodded. "Sorry to hear that. I hope your parents were willing to help you out." James let out a yawn.

"Okay, let's get you settled so you can take your nap, old man," Cindy teased, avoiding a response to James's comment. James followed Cindy into her room. "Since, I never know if or when my roommate will be here, you can use my room."

"Are you sure? I don't want to put you out," James asked in a concerned tone.

"Don't worry about it. I can just stay in my roommate's room… or sleep on the couch or something. It's fine."

"Cindy…"

"Really, Jimmy. I'm fine. Just take your nap. We can argue about sleeping arrangements later."

James woke up a couple of hours later feeling better than he had in several days. As soon as he woke up, he had taken his Power Pill, ready to test them out. He walked out of Cindy's room and saw her sitting on the couch reading a book. She looked up when she heard the door open.

"Hey, you're up. Do you feel any better?" Cindy asked, placing her book on the coffee table.

James nodded. "That was the first time I've slept in a couple of days. It was much needed."

"A couple of days? Jimmy, you should probably still be sleeping if you haven't slept in a couple of days," Cindy scolded.

James rolled his eyes and sat next to her on the couch. He was hoping that his Power Pill would start to take effect soon. He needed to see if his experiments had been worth it, or if he had been wasting his time, when he should have been working on his plans for the cell mutations.

"Are you hungry? We can go out, or I can whip something up," Cindy suggested.

James shook his head. "No thanks. I could go for a drink though."

Cindy laughed. "Well, I have work tomorrow, so if you want a drink, it'll have to be whatever I've got here."

"I just meant like water or something, but if your offering…" James teased.

Cindy rolled her eyes and stood up to walk over to the kitchen. She opened the fridge to find it contained no alcohol. "Dammit," Cindy muttered under her breath. "Looks like I forgot to run to the store. All I've got is Purple Flurp, sorry," Cindy apologized to James.

"Purple Flurp? I haven't had that in ages. I didn't even know they still made that stuff," James responded.

"Do you want some?" Cindy smiled. She grabbed two cans and a couple of wine glasses.

James smiled and nodded as Cindy made her way back to the couch. She set the glasses down, to which James smirked at her choice of drinking ware. She rolled her eyes and handed him the soda can.

"This is kind of exciting. I feel like a kid again," James almost giggled. He poured the contents of the can into the wine glass. "Where did you find Purple Flurp?"

"They only sell it in this obscure market in town. It's kind of expensive, but so worth it," Cindy replied, pouring her own drink. The two old friends clinked glasses and each took a swig of their sodas.

"Oh my god," James practically sighed. "I forgot how good this was." He took another long swallow, savoring every minute of his favorite childhood drink.

Cindy laughed and set her glass down on the table. "Jeez, Neutron. Get a room."

James playfully flipped off Cindy as he finished the remains from the glass. It might have been the nostalgia, but James was feeling more like his old self. He felt comfortable around Cindy, as if they had always been friends. This scared him, because he knew the Power Pill still hadn't taken effect.

"You know what I find funny?" Cindy asked, ignoring the obscene gesture. James just waited for her to continue. "We both lived in Cambridge, yet we hardly ever saw each other. We would occasionally see each other at the grocery store or something, but other than that, it's like we were living in two completely different worlds."

"We pretty much did," James replied eyeing Cindy's half full glass. She rolled her eyes and handed it to him. James continued, "I mean, you were Miss Harvard, and I was an MIT geek. We avoided eye contact out in public, and we had no reason to see each other. And besides, I spent most of my weekends in Boston."

"What was in Boston that was so interesting?" Cindy pried.

James took a sip of his drink and cleared his throat before answering, "Betty," he finally replied.

"Quinlan?!" Cindy laughed. "You and her dated?"

"She was the only one who talked to me in high school. Why is it so funny that we dated?"

"I'm sorry. It's not funny," Cindy tried to stifle a giggle.

James rolled his eyes at Cindy's lame attempt. "Well you'll be happy to know that it didn't work out, obviously."

"Why not?"

"Betty was using me. She was at risk of losing her scholarship, so I helped her with her homework," James replied nonchalantly.

"Helped?" Cindy eyed James suspiciously.

"Helped, did for her, what's the difference? They're synonymous, Vortex."

Cindy sighed at the excuse. "So what did she do for you in return?"

"And what makes you think that?" James asked.

"Oh come on, you expect me to believe that after all the shit you dealt with in high school that you would just 'tutor' someone for free?"

"She was my girlfriend, of course I was going to help her."

"She must have been pretty good then," Cindy muttered.

"I cannot believe you just said that," James was shocked.

"I didn't say anything. You are simply inferring that I meant sex."

"Like it wasn't implied, but for the record, yes Betty and I slept together."

"After your study sessions, right? Now let me guess: you only ever went over to her place. She never came to yours. How long after she passed her classes and got to keep her scholarship did she break up with you? Did she ever say thank you or I lo—,"

"Fine, Vortex, You're right. God," James finally shouted.

"Look, I'm not trying to make you feel bad, but you have to stick up for yourself. You're worth a lot more than people give you credit for," Cindy tried to calm him down.

"Well it doesn't matter anyway. That was a long time ago."

"Apparently it does matter. You're still hung up on it. I bet Betty hasn't even given what she did to you a second thought."

"Wow, thanks, Vortex. That did make me feel better," James replied sarcastically as he stood to leave, fed up with the conversation.

"Jimmy, wait. Forget about her. There are so many other people in this world that do care about you."

James paused and turned around to face Cindy. "Like who?"

"Like your parents and Sheen. And me."

James scoffed. "You're just trying to make me feel better.

"Well, duh. But it's true. I do care about you. A lot. And I don't know why you don't realize that."

"Cindy the first time I've talked to you in over eight years was a week ago. Excuse me if I have a hard time believing you."

"God, you're an ass. You can't take a compliment. I'm trying to rekindle our friendship, or whatever it was that we were. You think that I would have invited you for a drink, or offered you a place to stay if I didn't care about you? That egotistical brain of yours can't fathom the idea that somebody might actually like you, and it won't allow you to open yourself up to liking someone else," Cindy raged.

"I never said I didn't like you, Vortex. I just don't understand why you would want to be friends with me again. I mean, after middle school, we drifted apart. Eventually I shut you out. I shut everyone out. Give me one logical reason why you care about me."

"I don't need a logical reason. There is no logical reason. You're so dense. How many times do I have to tell you? I like you, Neutron. Ever since that day you moved in across the street. I hated you and I liked you. I knew that you were going to give me a run for my money, but I didn't care. All I ever tried to do was impress you," Cindy admitted.

James was still skeptical. "Cindy, I like you too. You know that. But it doesn't make any sense. I mean scientifically speaking—"

"Since when did science have anything to do with love? I don't need science or logic to tell me how I feel."

"…Love?" James stammered.

Cindy groaned, "You know what I mean."

"Okay, Cindy. I'm sorry. I'm tired of fighting." James sat back down. "I just have a lot on my mind." He leaned forward placing his head in his palms.

"I'm sorry too. Old habits die hard I guess. We're just so used to arguing with each other, even when we're trying to be friendly."

They sat in silence for several minutes. They were both thinking the same thing: "we can never just be friends. There's always going to be something getting in the way."

James finally stood up. "I'm going to bed. Thanks again for letting me stay here."

Cindy looked up. "You don't want to argue about the sleeping arrangements?" she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

James smiled weakly. "You're not tired of arguing yet?"

"I don't think I ever will be. At least not with you."

James chuckled and shook his head. "Goodnight, Vortex." He walked into Cindy's bedroom and closed the door. He was upset that the Power Pills had not worked. He had wasted an entire week of lab work, and he still let Cindy have an influence over him.

James was settling in when there was a light knock on the door. James walked over and opened the door to see what Cindy wanted.

"Sorry, I need my—"

James kissed her and pulled her into the room.

* * *

 _A/N: Please don't expect a new post again anytime soon. This chapter took up most of what I had written, so I've got a lot of catching up to do, and with the school year ending, I feel busier than ever. Prepping 10-year-olds for testing and a program is hard work! Summer will be here soon and I hope to have more writing time. Thanks for sticking with me through this!_


	5. Chapter 5

_Author's Note: New chapter! Remember how the last chapter ended? Well it should go without saying that this chapter definitely has some suggestive themes. I did some revisions and editing, but honestly I could have done more. I just thought that you all had waited long enough. Believe me I know what it feels like. I haven't read an updated story in months. If you see any mistakes, or something doesn't make sense, please PM me or write a comment. I am more than happy to fix it.  
_

Enjoy!

* * *

As James pulled Cindy into the kiss, he closed the door and pressed her up against it, pinning her in. Cindy was surprised and pulled away from the kiss. She looked at James in confusion. "Neutron, are you okay? You've got a strange look in your eyes. It's fierce; lustful. I'm not complaining, I just want to know what's going on," Cindy was babbling.

"Shut up, Vortex," James whispered nibbling on Cindy's ear.

She smiled and ducked under his arms and walked over to the bed. James followed suit, practically pouncing on Cindy. He kissed her eagerly, pinning her arms above her head. She moaned as James bit her bottom lip. This drove him crazy. He smiled a devious smile and began sucking on Cindy's neck. She wiggled, trying to get her arms free, but this just made James press her arms down harder as he began peppering kisses down to Cindy's chest.

He finally released her arms so that he could remove her shirt. She quickly sat up to assist, and then ran her hands down James's already bare chest. James pushed Cindy back down onto the bed, the need to be in control was overpowering him. James slid his hands up Cindy's covered thighs before sliding his fingers over to the button on her jeans. He stopped to glance up at Cindy looking for permission to continue. She smiled and gave him a small nod. James undid the button and slid his hand down. Cindy sighed contentedly, pressing her head deeper into the pillows.

Cindy, never being one to be submissive, sat up as James pulled his hand away. She stood up and pressed James against the wall. She tried to pin his arms down, but James was too strong. Instead, he began tugging Cindy's jeans down. She helped herself wiggle out of them and kicked them off somewhere in the room. James leaned down to kiss Cindy, and scooped her up until she wrapped her legs around his waist.

"There's a real fight for power tonight. What's up with that?" Cindy asked breathlessly between kisses.

"I don't know," James replied pulling away to look at the girl in his arms. "It's like something inside me is…" he trailed off realizing what was going on.

"Hmm?" Cindy hummed as she trailed her fingers through James's hair.

"Nothing, I've probably just been in the lab too long. We can stop if you want," James muttered as Cindy unwrapped her legs to stand in front of him.

"Please don't."

"Cindy, I'm not sure what's going on. I don't think I'll be able to stop."

"Well let's find out." Cindy pulled James over to the bed and pushed him down. She tried to straddle his hips, only for James to flip over so he was on top. Once again, he pinned Cindy's arms down and took over her lips.

"I told you I wouldn't be able to stop," James growled against her lips.

Cindy wriggled, nervous and excited at the same time. She let James's mouth explore her body until she couldn't take it any longer. "Neutron, quit teasing me." Cindy wrapped her legs around James's hips and pulled him closer to her. "Please," she sounded desperate.

"I like it when you beg," James smiled devilishly. He removed the plaid pajama bottoms and crawled back on top of Cindy.

* * *

James woke to a small beeping sound coming from his watch. He shut the alarm from the watch off and glanced at the time. It was 6:30 am. He had a slight headache he assumed was from the drug he had taken. James rolled over to wake up Cindy, but found the bed empty beside him. Then he heard a clatter come from the kitchen. James got out of bed, picked up the pants he had been wearing off the floor, and put them on. He walked out of the bedroom and saw Cindy making breakfast. "Morning," James said clearing his throat.

Cindy turned around. "Hi. Want some breakfast before we head to work?"

"Just coffee for me," James replied eyeing the coffee maker.

Cindy nodded and got a mug out for James. She gestured to the coffee maker and went back to fixing her own breakfast. She was unusually quiet.

"Cindy is something wrong?" James asked, leaning against the counter.

She hesitated before answering, unsure if she really wanted to have this conversation. "I saw your drugs. I don't know what they are, but are you seriously going down this road, knowing what it has done to your friends?"

"Cindy, it's not like that. I'm not an addict. I invented them, but they didn't work the way I intended them."

"Is that what was making you act like you were last night? What's in those pills?"

"It doesn't matter! They don't work how I need them to work, so who cares?" James felt his face get warm with rage.

"I care! Are we really having this conversation again?" Cindy practically yelled.

James sighed, "Fine. The pills are a mixture of Adderall with a trace of Megalomanium, the power drug I invented when I was eleven."

"Megalomanium? Jimmy, that stuff is dangerous. Why would you be messing around with it?"

"I don't know. Boredom?" James lazily answered.

"Don't give me that. You clearly made them for something, but, Jimmy, please be careful. I know you remember what happened with them before. I guess I can respect your privacy, at least for now. Hurry up. We need to leave by 7:30." Cindy placed her plate in the drying rack and walked into the bathroom. She hollered before closing the door, "You can use my roommate's shower if you want."

* * *

Cindy led James into the research center and signed in at the front desk. James was handed a bunch of visitor forms to fill out. He felt like he was being admitted into the hospital.

"Could you hurry up please?" Cindy urged. "We're going to be late."

"Hey, I didn't know I was going to have to sign all this stuff. There's a lot to read. I want to make sure I'm not selling my soul or something."

"For God's sake, it's a medical research center, not the psychiatric ward. Just sign the damn things so we can get going."

James sighed in frustration and signed the rest of the papers. He handed the clipboard back to the receptionist, and Cindy grabbed his arm and pulled him into the elevator. "Thanks again for doing this for me," James muttered adjusting his tie.

"You're welcome. Just promise me you're not going to mess around with that Megalomanium concoction again, okay?"

"Cindy, I already told you that it didn't work the way I intended."

"What was it supposed to do, anyway?"

The elevator beeped, and the doors opened. James sighed, relieved that he avoided answering that question all morning. He continued to follow Cindy as she made her way through the hallway, avoiding other residents and interns.

"Not making many friends here, I see," James mentioned.

"I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to do cancer research," Cindy commented back. "Besides, who are you to talk, Mr. I-shut-everyone-out?"

"Fair enough." They continued down the hall until the got to a laboratory.

Cindy handed James a lab coat. "Here, you'll need this. And try not to act like a know-it-all. What we're doing here is extremely important, and I don't need my colleagues thinking that you can just waltz in here and tell everyone how to do their jobs."

"I won't say anything. I just need those stem cells."

Cindy sighed and scanned her access key to unlock the door. They walked in and James stared in awe. This lab was astounding. It was smaller than his NASA lab, but the equipment inside was all new and high-tech. "I wouldn't mind working here every day," James whispered in awe, mainly to himself.

"Pretty great, huh?" Cindy replied.

"Great would be the understatement of the century. This place is amazing. You're obviously doing incredible work here."

"Thanks, Jimmy. That means a lot. Come on. I'll introduce you to my boss." Cindy led James to a small office at the back of the lab. She knocked lightly on the partially closed door. "Marie? I'd like to introduce you to Dr. James Neutron."

James blushed at the introduction and extended his arm to shake hands. "It's nice to meet you Dr.—" James realized he didn't know her name.

"Page. You can call me Marie. It is a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Neutron."

"James is fine. The pleasure is all mine. I am indebted to you. Thank you so much for donating these cells."

"Well, James, it's not going to be that easy. While I trust that these cells will be safe in your hands, it wouldn't be right of me to just give them to you. I'd like for you to work alongside Dr. Vortex today. Learn about what we do here, and hopefully the research you plan on doing with these cells will be helpful to us one day," Dr. Page explained.

James forced a smile. "I understand. It would be a pleasure to work with Cindy today."

"Thank you for your understanding, Dr. Neutron. The cells will be available to you at the end of the day." Dr. Page ended the conversation in a way that told the two old friends it was time to go.

"Thanks, Marie," Cindy said as she closed the door. "Great," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that, Dr. Vortex?" James teased.

Cindy forced a smile. "Nothing. I just wasn't expecting to get a lab partner today."

"Don't think of me as a lab partner. Think of me as an employee-in-training. That way, you'll get to be the smarter one for once," James smiled cheekily.

"Ha. Ha. How hilarious. Let's get to work."

* * *

"Okay, so this sample had the adenovirus injected into it last week, and we've been observing it. So far we haven't seen a change in the cells, which means that the proteins aren't being formed. In this case, I would say the adenovirus is ineffective for the treatment of this type of cancer," Cindy explained to an almost dumb-founded James.

"So what does that mean?" James asked.

"It means we're back to square one. We'll keep this sample growing for another week to see if there's a change, but it's really just a formality. This sample is dead."

"It's frustrating, isn't it?" James said noticing the dejected look on Cindy's face.

"What do you mean?"

"That it didn't work. You try one thing, and then another and another, yet nothing works. Doesn't it drive you crazy?"

"I suppose, but if I don't continue to try, then there will never be a cure. Don't you feel the same about your work? I mean, as a kid, you never gave up on an invention. Even that dumb cheese ray worked," Cindy teased.

"Correction, still works. But you're right. It's pretty dumb," James laughed. "Thanks for letting me work with you today. It's nice to see you in your element. You clearly made the right career choice."

"Try telling that to my parents," Cindy muttered.

"Your parents aren't proud of the work you're doing? What parent wouldn't want their kid to be a doctor?"

"The kind of parents who wanted their kid to follow in their footsteps and become a lawyer. God, my parents are infuriating. My whole visit consisted of them telling me that if I had become a lawyer, I would already be working in a law firm, their law firm, instead of wasting their money on my residency."

"Yikes. Why did you choose medicine over law?"

"Have you ever read a law textbook before? It's boring as hell. I wasn't interested in it. But if you asked my parents, I chose medical science because of you."

"Me?" James was stunned. "What do you mean?"

"My parents knew I was always trying to one up you, and they thought this was yet another lame attempt to try and show you up. They didn't even consider the fact that you were studying nuclear physics and that it had nothing to do with medical science whatsoever. But no, it was just their competitive daughter, whom they made that way, trying to 'get the neighbor boy to notice her.'" Cindy sighed.

James smiled slightly. "I see."

"It's not true! I didn't choose medical science to impress you, God, no. I think part of me wanted to defy my parents, but I really did hate all that lawyer garbage. And to be perfectly honest, I was terrible. I failed my intro class. Intro! Can you believe that?"

James stifled a laugh. "Wow, I'm sorry to hear that. You must have had a lot of parental pressure on you."

"Don't laugh. It's not funny. My parents were furious. They said I didn't apply myself enough. When I told them I was switching majors at the semester, they flipped. They said I was giving up too quickly," Cindy sighed.

James nodded his sympathy. While he didn't always agree with the choices his parents made for him growing up, at least they were supportive in his field of study. They would have been supportive even if he had chosen not to go to college. It was hard for James to imagine what Cindy's home life was like. She never talked about it. As a kid the only time he heard anything about it was when they were stranded on the desert island and she had a panic attack about missing her piano lesson. And now as adults he only got snippets, and they weren't good.

"Well, Dr. Neutron, do you think you've succeed me in this field now too?" Cindy joked, bringing James out of his thoughts.

"Not even close. As much as I hate to say it, you win this round, Dr. Vortex," James smiled.

"I'm sorry, what was that? I couldn't hear you over the sound of all the money I spent on school."

James rolled his eyes and sighed, "Congratulations, Vortex. You win. But don't get used to it."

"Yes! I've waited 15 years to hear those words. I can tell my parents that it worked, I finally beat you. They'll be so happy!"

"Shut up." James took a step closer to Cindy and gazed down to her. He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Ahem," James and Cindy turned around to see Dr. Page standing behind them. "Finished for the day?"

Cindy blushed. "Yes, sorry. I—"

"My apologies, Dr. Page. I just got caught up in the moment," James confessed.

"No need to apologize, just not in the lab, please. Anyway, if you two are finished with the samples, get cleaned up and come see me before you leave. I'll get you those cells, Dr. Neutron."

"Thank you, Dr. Page," James replied as she turned to walk away.

"Oh my God, That was so embarrassing. I felt like I was in high school again, getting caught making out in the janitor's closet," Cindy muttered as she placed her face in her hands.

"Who did you make out with in the janitor's closet?" James stared at Cindy in shock.

Cindy stared back, a look of confusion on her face turning into one of realization. "Um, no one. It was just a dream I had a long time ago. It was just really vivid." Cindy avoided eye contact with James as she started cleaning up the lab.

James nudged Cindy. "Come on, tell me. If it was only a dream then it doesn't matter."

"You're an asshole. You know it was you. Otherwise you wouldn't be pestering me."

James smiled, "I just wanted to hear you say it. So, we made out in a janitor's closet and got caught. Damn, Cindy, you've got a vivid subconscious."

"Quit being an ass and help me clean up."

James and Cindy walked out of the hospital discussing what they were going to do for dinner. Since the Power Pills didn't work, James had an urgency to leave Boston and make up for lost time, but his flight wasn't until Sunday. He was so consumed making mental notes on what he should do with the cells he had received, that he didn't notice Cindy get quiet as a tall, dark-haired girl approached them.

"Hey, Jimmy. It's nice to see you," Betty said.

"Huh? Betty? "James came out of his trance.

"Hi, Jimmy. How are you?" Betty asked again, this time with sultry in her voice.

"Hi, Betty. I'm fine. It's James, by the way. Cindy and I are, uh, just heading to dinner. We're not together, I mean we're together right now, but we're not—"

"I think what Neutron here is trying to say is that we're in a hurry, so we'll just see you later, Betty, bye." Cindy replied rudely as she grabbed James's hand and tugged him passed Betty down the sidewalk.

When they got far enough away, Cindy stopped and let go of James's hand. "What the hell is wrong with you? You were acting like you were in high school again. Clearly you're not over her, even after what she did to you."

"I am so over Betty. I just wasn't expecting to see her here. And who are you to say I was acting like a kid in high school? What was that response you gave? Clearly you're still jealous."

"I am not jealous of that skinny bitch!" Cindy yelled. "Why would I be jealous? She is just so god damn annoying with her perfect hair and perfect body. She gets on my nerves. I see her almost every day when I get off of work. She's just always there. I never thought I would have to deal with her after high school, yet here I am complaining about her to one of her ex-boyfriends."

"You sound a little jealous," James teased.

"Knock it off, Neutron. You're not the only one who she's messed with," Cindy sighed.

"What do you mean?"

"Remember in high school when Nick and I dated for a while?" Cindy asked. James scoffed, but nodded. "Well," Cindy continued. "That whole relationship was a scam anyway. Libby tried to get me to date one of the popular boys so that I would fit in better with her group, but that's beside the point. Anyway, I knew that Nick wasn't really that into me, but along comes Betty, trouncing around school in one of her skimpy dress code violation outfits. She came right up to Nick, while I'm standing right there, and just plants a big, sloppy, seductive kiss on him. I know it shouldn't bug me, since I knew Nick was going to dump me anyway, but Betty knew what she was doing. It was her way of proving to me that Nick didn't actually like me, because you know what happened next? Nick continued to kiss her, dumped me in between kisses, and Betty laughed and eyed me as I left the room. I was humiliated. I don't think she even liked Nick all that much. I don't know what I did, but she's always had something against me."

James stood silent for a moment as all that information sank in. "Wow," was all he said after several minutes. "She really is a bitch. Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"Because it wasn't relevant," Cindy replied.

"Come on," James said grabbing Cindy's hand and running back in the direction they had come from.

"Where are we going?" Cindy panted as she tried to keep up with James.

"To find Betty. I want to give her a piece of my mind."

"Jimmy, no!" Cindy tried to stop him from running. Her face was turning red with embarrassment. "It's not worth mentioning to her. It was a long time ago and frankly this is really childish. Do we really have nothing better to do than rehash old high school pettiness? It's a little pathetic don't you think?"

James stopped and looked at Cindy. He was trying to understand what she was saying. "I guess it is childish. Hanging out with your childhood friends will do that I guess. But aren't you at all interested in why she treated you like shit?"

"Of course I am, but what am I supposed to do? Walk up to her and say, 'Hey, Betty, why were you such a fucking bitch to me in high school?'"

"No, I just thought that your curiosity would be satisfied if you got to talk to her. You know, and maybe I could figure out why she was such a manipulative bitch."

"I am not talking to that stupid slut, so if you want to go find her, you're going by yourself."

"Talk about high school pettiness, sheesh," James teased. "It's fine, let's just go to dinner. You could definitely use a drink."

"Nuh uh. You're not getting me drunk again, Neutron," Cindy joked.

"Not drunk, just buzzed enough for you to have a little fun. Maybe we can make your dreams a reality and find a closet to make out in."

"You're not going to let that go, are you?"

"Not in the foreseeable future."

Cindy sighed and led James down the road to her favorite restaurant.

* * *

 _A/N: In case it wasn't blatantly obvious, the Power Pill caused James's naughty behavior. I had a whole little explanation in the story, but felt that it took away from the story line._

 _For the record, I did some research on cancer treatments/cures. Adenovirus is a real thing used for cancer research, whether or not I wrote about it accurately is another story. I even went as far as making sure their was a real reputable cancer research hospital in Boston (no wonder this chapter took so long)!_

 _Do you think I use too much dialogue? Or do you like the conversations? Sometimes I feel like I use dialogue too much, but I also feel like conversations make the story seem more real. Let me know what you think. I'm happy to make adjustments._


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Hi. Remember me? It's been awhile. This chapter is incredibly short, and I didn't really want to just post this part, but it has been way too long. I thought you all deserved a little something :) My life is slowly gaining back some sanity. I had a big move, on top of a new school year, and things are beginning to feel a little normal again. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think/predict/ideas/please help my writer's block go away. _  
_**

Enjoy!

* * *

 _"Cindy, you wouldn't understand. It's not about you. It's not about anybody. It's about me proving to everyone who has ever doubted me."_

 _"Proving what? That you let them get to you? What could you possibly have to prove to the idiots you went to school with?"_

 _"It's complicated!"_

 _"It's not complicated. In fact it's so stupidly simple, that I'm rather embarrassed for you. I would have thought that the genius Jimmy Neutron would've been able to come up with a better plan. I mean revenge? Isn't that a little clichéd and over-done?"_

 _"I cannot believe that after all these years I'm still letting you get to me. What do you want from me, Vortex? I'm never going to be good enough, but just tell me what you want!"_

 _"I want you to be honest with yourself. You don't really want to take over the world. You just want someone to show a shred of sympathy for you. Jimmy, you may be a genius, but you can be pretty stupid. I care about you. You don't have to put on this show anymore. We can be together."_

 _"Oh, Cindy. That's where you're wrong. I really do want to take over the world. And when you're finally out of the picture, then it will be a snap." The syringe was plunged deep into her arm, and the mutant cells overtook._

James woke with a start, terrified by the vivid dream he had just witnessed. He looked next to him and saw Cindy was still asleep. She had her hand delicately placed on James's chest. He carefully slid out of bed and began gathering his things. He couldn't stay here any longer. After that dream, he feared the truth behind it.

Cindy was the last person that James should have ever gotten help from. He knew that he should not have gotten drinks with her, and he definitely should not have done anything else with her. He cared too much about her. This was only making things harder for him.

James finished gathering his things and quietly left the bedroom. He looked around the apartment for something to write with. He needed to leave, but he also knew that Cindy deserved a note of thanks and goodbye. He found a pad of paper and a pencil. He didn't know what to say. "Hey, I had a dream that I was going to kill you, so I had to leave. Thanks for the cells!" He groaned in frustration.

"Is something wrong?" Cindy was standing in the bedroom doorway, hair disheveled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Where are you going?"

"I can't stay here, Cindy. I should have never come to Boston in the first place, let alone stay with you. I need to go," James answered vaguely.

"I don't understand. Did I do something wrong?" Cindy felt self-conscience as she tugged at the t-shirt she was wearing to cover her bare legs.

"No! I don't want you to think that. It's just that I have things I need to get done, and I can't do them here."

"What are you planning on doing? Your flight's not until tomorrow."

"I'll change the flight, or take the train or something. It doesn't matter. I just can't be here anymore."

Cindy nodded, knowing better than to argue with him on the subject. "Do you want some coffee before you leave?"

James sighed but nodded. Cindy wandered over to the small kitchen and began prepping the coffee maker.

"Thank you for the cells by the way," James muttered.

"Sure. I'm always happy to help you."

James stood awkwardly in the living room while the coffee was being made. Cindy pulled two mugs out of the cabinet, along with the sugar bowl. The coffee maker sputtered out its last few drops before clicking off. Cindy poured the liquid into a mug and held it out for James to come get. He walked over and took the cup and politely turned down the sugar when Cindy offered. James sat down on the sofa scooting over and offering a place for Cindy to sit. She sat down timidly on the edge, unsure of exactly what was going on. She felt that she had done something to drive James away, despite him assuring her that it wasn't her fault.

"Thanks for letting me stay here, too," James finally broke the silence.

"Of course."

Neither of them said anything. James finished his coffee and walked to the kitchen to clean his cup. He set the cleaned cup in the drying rack and picked up his things to leave. He didn't know what he expected Cindy to do, but she did nothing. She didn't look at him, and she didn't stand up.

"Bye, Cindy," James whispered, knowing that he probably would never see her again. He opened the door and left without another word.

"Bye, Jimmy," Cindy whispered to herself as tears formed in her eyes.

* * *

James found himself at the airport trying to change his flight departure date. It was going to be incredibly expensive, but James didn't feel like spending six hours on a train just to save a few bucks. He had too much work to do. He sighed as he pulled out his credit card to pay for the change fee. With all these flights he'd been taking, James barely had enough money to pay for rent this month.

After boarding the plane, James sat down and closed his eyes. He began to make mental notes on how he planned on experimenting with the stem cells.

"Excuse me, are you James Neutron?" a voice asked.

James opened his eyes and nodded at the man talking to him. "What can I do for you?"

"You can fuck off, that's what," the man scoffed.

"Excuse me?" James said, furrowing his brow.

"You don't remember me? I failed advanced astrophysics because of you."

"How did I make you fail a college class two years ago?"

"I spent the entire semester working on my final term project, and you gave your presentation right before mine. You had gathered research and evidence that basically threw all of my research in the garbage. You had disproven my entire semester's worth of work. I was laughed out of MIT, you son-of-a-bitch."

"Okay, but I did research just like you did. I'm sorry that your work was disproven, but don't I deserve credit?" James defended himself. He glanced into the aisle wondering why no one seemed to notice this heated conversation.

"You just always have to be better than everyone else, don't you? Why don't you just do the world a favor and drop dead." The man stormed down the aisle.

James clenched and unclenched his fists. Situations like that had happened throughout his life. _Fine._ James thought. _If being better than everyone else is what people want, than that's exactly what they're going to get. I am smarter than everyone else, and I'm also more powerful. They'll see. Once I rule the world, they'll all be begging for my forgiveness._

* * *

 **Author's Note: So as I said before, this is not where the chapter was supposed to end, I just thought that maybe a post would inspire me a bit. Thank you for reading and for reviewing. I've got some tough critics out there, and I want to thank you for your honest reviews. You are helping me become a better writer.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Hello again. Wow, this chapter took forever! I was going to wait until I had gotten a little ahead, but I wanted to post. I've read through it a few times to revise and edit, but I didn't want to over-analyze anything. Let me know if you see anything that needs fixing. And of course let me know what you think. I'm open to suggestions. _  
_**

Enjoy!

* * *

James had been back home for about a week and he wasn't having much luck with the cells. No matter what he did, he couldn't come up with a solution. His original plan to create mutant cells now seemed far-fetched. How would mutant cells help him rule the world? All they would do would create zombie like minions, but that wouldn't give James the satisfaction. If he was going to rule the world, he wanted the people to fear him, not just bow down to his every command because of mind control. He wouldn't mind a few minions, but what was the point of world domination if no one feared you?

James headed into work. Maybe taking his mind off of things for a while would help him come up with a plan. He was just unlocking his office when his boss came up to him.

"Dr. Neutron, may I have a word with you?"

James nodded, following the man down the hall.

As they reached the office, Dr. Nystrom closed the door behind James. "Please, sit down," he gestured toward the office chairs. "There is no easy way to say this, Dr. Neutron. Your work on the Hulton Space Craft is being suspended."

"Excuse me?" James gawked.

"Our government funding is at an all-time low. I am truly sorry. If it were up to me I would continue your project. We simply do not have the funds to support it at this time."

"So you're firing me? The main reason I was hired was for this project."

"It's more like leave without pay. We will bring you back onto our team once we receive funding for the project. In the meantime though, I am going to have to ask you to turn in your keys and badge."

James sighed. He couldn't believe what was happening. "I'll have to go get you my keys. They are in my office." He stood and walked out of his boss's office.

Back in his own office, James shuffled through his work bag to find his keys and access card. James was furious, but refused to show his emotions in the office. Not only was he losing the job he had worked his entire life for, but he was losing access to one of the most prestigious laboratories in the nation. He had to think of something. Quickly, James pulled out a digital scanner he had been tinkering with for a few weeks. It wasn't perfect, but it would have to do.

James scanned each of his keys, creating a digital copy that could be used on a 3D printer later. It was a long shot, but he scanned his access card as well hoping that things would copy properly when sent through a 3D printer. He just hoped his work account wouldn't be suspended.

James set the digital scanner back in his bag and walked back to Dr. Nystrom's office to turn in the keys.

"Thank you, Dr. Neutron. Again, I am truly sorry. Your final paycheck should be deposited within the next few days. I am unsure of when the project will be up and running again, but I will keep you posted. We look forward to working with you again."

James nodded, shook Dr. Nystrom's hand and turned around to exit, rolling his eyes in the process. He headed to his office to gather his things.

When James got out to his car he sat in the driver's seat and banged his head on the steering wheel. "Lousy, mother fucking government job," James muttered. "As if my life hasn't already been going to shit."

James drove home and sat on his couch. He didn't know what to do. No matter how it was said, James had been fired. And with the amount of flights James had been on the last several weeks, he barely had enough money to cover his rent for the next month, let alone buying food. He had no money and nowhere to turn to.

James phone began to vibrate. Sheen was calling. James sighed and hit answer. "Hello this is James Neutron."

 _"Jimmy? Oh, sorry man. I meant to call someone else. What's up though?"_ Sheen said.

James sighed, "Well, due to some awesome budget cuts, I just got fired this morning. I don't know what I'm going to do."

 _"Fuck man, that blows,"_ Sheen replied.

"You could say that again. At least it's just temporary."

 _"So when do you get to go back?"_

"Undetermined. It all depends on the budget. The problem is, I can't afford to keep living here, and the job market sucks right now."

 _"You could always come back to Retroville. At least for a little while, until you get back on your feet. Hell, if I had a roommate, I could afford a nicer place."_ Sheen suggested.

"Thanks, Sheen. I just don't think I could live in Retroville again. I burned a lot of bridges with a lot of people."

 _"What's that supposed to mean? Jimmy, there is nothing wrong with Retroville. I get that it's not NASA or Boston, but it's a good town with good people. And honestly if you are going to let the people from high school affect your happiness now, than I feel sorry for you. Get over yourself. My poor choices drastically affected my life, but I moved on. Am I where I thought I would be when I was seventeen? Fuck no, but if I continued to let high school shit rule my life, I would be way worse off."_ Sheen practically yelled through the phone.

James was stunned. He sat quiet for a moment trying to figure out what to say. "You're right, Sheen. Sorry. I don't know that I'm ready to go back to Retroville. But I will keep it in mind if necessary."

 _"Good. Look me up if you find yourself back here. See ya, Jim,"_ Sheen replied.

"Bye, Sheen."

James hit end call. That was definitely a wakeup call. It seemed that everyone was telling James to move on from his past. Maybe they were right. In his dream back in Boston, Cindy had called his scheme to take over the world "clichéd and overdone." Even though it was just a dream, he knew she was right (not to mention the fact that she would tell him that exact thing anyway). Maybe James needed a bigger reason to take over the world other than revenge.

James picked up his cell phone and looked up a number on the web. He hit call and waited as the phone rang.

" _Strych Enterprise_. How may I direct your call?"

"Eustace Strych's office please."

"I'm sorry, he's in a meeting. Can I leave him a message or maybe schedule an appointment?"

"Just have him call me back at this number please."

"Okay. May I ask who is calling?"

"Tell him it's from Neutron."

"Thank you, sir. I will relay the message. Goodbye."

This was either going to be a brilliant plan, or the worst thing James had ever done.

* * *

Several hours later, James received a call back from Eustace's office. James took a deep breath and answered the phone. "Hello, Eustace," James said in his usual manner.

"I'm sorry, this is Mr. Strych's assistant. We spoke earlier, Mr. Neutron."

"Yes, hello."

"Mr. Strych wanted me to phone you back to tell you, and I quote, 'I'm not going to talk to Neutron over the phone. If it's so damn important he can man up and tell me face-to-face.' End quote."

James sighed in frustration. "Of course he said that. Your office is in New York, right?"

"Yes, sir."

"Could you please transfer me through to his office right now?"

"Sir, I'm not sure if that's a good—,"

"Miss, please. I only need a minute."

"Yes, sir. I'll transfer your call. One moment please."

James waited for just a minute before he heard the click as the line was picked up.

"What in bloody hell is so god-damned important that you have to call me at my place of business, Neutron? I told my secretary to tell you to meet me in person," Eustace screamed into the phone.

"Well hello to you to, Strych. Don't get mad at your assistant. I made her transfer me through. I just need a minute on the phone with you, and if you still want to meet face-to-face later, than I am happy to do that," James replied calmly.

"What the fuck do you want?" Eustace sighed.

"I've got a business deal for you, and could use your evil little mind."

Eustace perked up. "I'm intrigued. What is it?"

"It really is something that should be discussed in person," James smirked.

"Fine! Set up an appointment with my secretary."

"Oh, it's not that simple. You see, I knew this would peak your interest. And I know that you won't let it go, at least until you hear my plan. You're sending your private jet to pick me up," James replied nonchalantly.

"And what gives you the right to tell me what to do?"

"Nothing. But if you want to hear what I have to offer, you'll send the jet."

Eustace thought for a minute before sighing. "Fine! Where are you?"

"Outside of Baltimore."

"You lazy son of a bitch," Eustace mumbled. "Alright. I'll let the captain know. He will be in contact with you to tell you when he arrives."

"Wonderful talking with you, Strych. See you soon." James ended the call with a satisfied grin.

James packed a small bag with the necessary things. He was grateful that he didn't have a lot of worldly possessions. He figured he wouldn't be back here, since he couldn't afford the rent anyway.

James's phone alerted him that his ride was here to take him to the airport. He sighed as he locked the apartment door and left the key under the mat. There was nothing in there that he needed. This place was not a home for James. He hadn't felt at home anywhere in a very long time.

* * *

The windows on the front of the huge office building reflected James's expression of disgust. Eustace was so flashy, even his building seemed to have an air of self-righteousness. He walked inside up to the information desk.

"Hi, I'm here to see Eust—"

James was interrupted by a silencing finger in his face and a disgusted look by the receptionist. He rolled his eyes and waited for the woman to finish her phone call.

The receptionist clicked a button on her headset and scowled at James. "What can I help you with, sir?"

"I have an appointment with Strych Enterprise," James responded through gritted teeth.

"What's your name and appointment time?"

"It's Neutron, and I wasn't scheduled a time. Eustace sent for me."

The lady rolled her eyes, "Look, Mr. Strych is a very busy man. If you don't have an appointment time, I can't let you go up."

"But I just spoke with him on the phone a few hours ago. If you could just call up to his assistant she knows that I'm coming."

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Don't make me call security."

James turned in a huff. He pulled his phone out and called Eustace's office.

"Problem, Neutron?" Eustace answered the phone.

James was thrown off guard. He was expecting to get the assistant. "I, uh, your _lovely_ receptionist won't let me upstairs because I don't have an appointment time."

"Oh, well she's not _my_ receptionist. And did I forget to give you an appointment time? Oh, shoot! I meant to have my secretary do that but I must have forgotten. Silly me." James could practically hear the smirk on Eustace's smug face.

"And what do you propose to do now, Strych?"

"Well I suppose you could schedule an appointment, but I'm pretty much booked solid until next week. You could try to make a run for it, but the elevator is right by the security office, and if I'm remembering correctly you aren't much of a runner. Hmm… whatever shall we do?"

James sighed. He was getting impatient. This plan was turning out to be a lot more complicated than necessary.

Eustace laughed. "Don't worry that ginormous head of yours. I'll call down to the front desk. See you in a few, Jimmy."

James growled and wandered back into the building. As he walked back up to the receptionist's desk, the woman's attitude had completely changed.

"Hello, Dr. Neutron. I am so sorry about early. The elevators are straight ahead. Mr. Strych's office is on the fortieth floor."

James nodded, but rolled his eyes as he wandered passed the desk. James reached the fortieth floor and followed the signs to find a grand office with solid oak doors. There was a small desk to the right of the doors where a young woman was working frantically. She didn't notice James walk up to her desk.

"Excuse me," James whispered.

The woman jolted out of her seat. "I am so sorry to keep you waiting. I've just been swamped with work lately. You must be Mr. Neutron. I'll let Mr. Strych know you are here." She clicked a few buttons on her phone and then gave a very relieving breath.

"Are you okay?" James asked.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm doing great. Just busy. Mr. Strych is a very busy man, and he needs a lot of things done in a short amount of time."

James gave her a look of sympathy. He knew what it felt like to be used like this. "If you don't mind my asking, why do you work for him? He seems to be running you ragged."

"Just trying to get by in this world. He says he's ready for you." The woman stood and opened the door for James. He nodded his thanks and entered the large office.

"James Neutron. How are you my old friend?" Eustace smiled deviously. "You used to say that people don't change, but I must say, seeing Jimmy Neutron on the side of evil is just deliciously refreshing."

"Not everyone changes. You're still a pompous ass," James retaliated.

"Oh Neutron, you mustn't be rude. You came to me remember?" Eustace reminded James. "Now, what in the world would lead you to seek my help?

"I need money, Strych."

"And what makes you think I'll give it to you?"

"Because I can give you what you've always wanted: power."

Eustace laughed. "How hilarious. In case you haven't noticed, I own and run my own business. I'd say I'm pretty powerful."

"Oh this is more than just owning a business. My plan includes power over the world."

"And why would you give me power over the free world for a bit of money? You're smarter than that."

"Well, that's the thing, it'd be my world. You'd help me rule it. See, you're better at the whole 'I'm better than you so I'm in charge' deal. People listen to you because of your money. But I can give you the brain power to be even more successful." James knew how to word this conversation so that it sounded like it would be Eustace's idea.

"Okay, but what do you plan to do with your rule of the world? How do you plan on making it successful? Why is it important to you?"

James thought for a moment. He had to be careful. He didn't want to give away the fact that he had no clue what he was doing. "Let me answer your questions with my own: why would you want to rule the world?"

"Well, in a modern sense, ruling the world would be providing people with something that they think they need in order to survive, and the only way to get it is through said ruler."

 _That actually makes sense._ James thought. "Exactly, and that's why I need your help. I have the brains to create this 'necessity,' and you have the money, business, and," James forced himself to say the next word, "charm to get it out to the public."

"So do you have an idea of something the public would need?" Eustace was starting to get invested.

"I've got to do some more research, but I will come up with something. I'm definitely thinking something medical. People are always looking for cure-alls."

"That is a brilliant idea, Neutron," Eustace was impressed. "I'm liking Evil Jimmy."

James smiled. "Now I think it will be best if I stay in New York, that way we can have easy access for communication. The only problem is I don't have a lab here."

"You work for NASA don't you? Columbia has their Institute for Space Studies. As long as you have your id, I'm sure you have full access to their laboratories. If not, I have my ways…"

"Of course, I didn't even think of that," James prayed that his digital copies would scan properly.

"Wonderful. We'll be in touch, Neutron. Now if you'll excuse me, I really do have things to get done," Eustace gestured to the door.

James rolled his eyes and left the office. He nodded his thanks to the assistant, and left the office building. He headed to his hotel. He had id badges and keys to replicate.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Let me know what you think! We are starting to see the "evil" Jimmy.**

 **P.S. Hulton Space Craft is totally fake. :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: Oh, hello there. It's been a while. Anyway, here is a new chapter. That's all I'm going to say for now.  
**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Hello, my name is Dr. James Neutron. I am a nuclear physicist over at Goddard Space Flight Center. I'm in town for research here at Columbia. I need access to your lab," James lied to the receptionist on the study floor of the laboratory.

"Dr. Neutron, it is an honor to meet you. I've been studying your graduate work from your days at MIT. It's fascinating," the young woman smiled widely.

James humbly smiled and repeated his request.

"Of course. Let me just check my records to verify your laboratory reservation."

"Is that really necessary?" James was calm on the outside, but inside panic was brewing.

"It's standard protocol. It's just to verify that the laboratory will be available for your use."

"What's your name?" James was going to charm his way out of this.

"Uh, Amelia," the girl was caught off guard.

"Amelia," James repeated. "What are you studying?"

Amelia blushed. "Nuclear physics. You are such an inspiration, Dr. Neutron."

"Oh, please. Call me James. And I'm flattered. Did you pick nuclear physics because of me? I feel so honored. I bet you are doing great work." James flashed a toothy grin.

"It is kind of difficult. In fact, I'm working on some stuff right now that I'm having a hard time with. I've been trying to figure it out all morning."

"Mind if I take a look?" James peeked over the counter to see what she was working on.

"Really? That would be so cool!" Amelia stood and unlocked the door so James could come through. James smirked at his cleverness. "I can't believe Dr. James Neutron is helping me with my homework. This is a dream come true!"

James sat down next to the young woman and looked at the textbook she was working from. The work she was trying to do was actually quite simple in James's mind, but he wasn't going to tell her that. "This can be pretty complicated. I'd be happy to help you, you have to promise me one thing though."

"What's that?" Amelia asked.

"Can you reserve the lab for me anonymously?"

"I don't know. I could get in a lot of trouble. Why would you need it reserved anonymously? You are a well credited NASA employee, there shouldn't be a problem with your reservation."

"It doesn't really matter, does it?"

"I guess not. Just make sure you are working in the lab after regular hours. And don't tell anyone that I was the one who helped you."

"You've got a deal," James smiled. He helped the gullible underclassman finish her homework, and then wandered back to the laboratory area, praying that his key card would work. He scanned his replica card and the light flashed green. He sighed in relief as he pulled on the door and entered the room. He had a lot of work to do.

* * *

 _"Neutron, I hope you're calling me because you have an idea for our little project,"_ Eustace groaned over the phone.

"Of course I do. I wouldn't call you otherwise." James huffed. "Now, I did some thinking, and I realized there was no significant illness outbreak that hasn't already been contained. It's too risky and will take too long to create a new one, so I'm thinking anthrax. I can create a strand and the treatment. Of course the only way to get the treatment is through us.

 _"Biological warfare? Neutron I'm surprised. I didn't think you had it in you."_

"Don't underestimate me, Strych. I'm full of surprises. My only problem is getting access to the bacteria. Once I have it, I can modify it, but I need a sample."

 _"Well, what do you want me to do about that? I certainly don't have any."_

"Yes, but you have ways of getting me some samples. I know you have ties with the military."

 _"And what am I supposed to say the purposes for the samples are? They're not just going to give me some because I ask. In case you haven't noticed, the military is pretty strict,"_ Eustace patronized.

"I don't know, think of something. You own a multi-billion dollar company, surely you can come up with some excuse. I've got to go. Let me know what you come up with," James ended his call with Eustace and grinned. His plan was finally coming together. James headed back into the lab to work on his mutant cells. Even though he had a plan, he still thought it would be necessary to have some zombie-minions at his disposal.

* * *

"This was easier than I thought it would be," James said to himself. He had just finished creating a mutation serum from the cells he received from Cindy's lab. This serum, once injected, would overtake the host causing him or her to become virtually brain dead for several hours. This would allow for brain manipulation. After that, James would have a nice little army to support him in his rise to power.

James walked out of the lab with his new concoction. He headed back to the hotel he was staying in (on Eustace's dollar of course). He had been in the lab most of the evening and was tired and a bit hungry. He pulled his phone out to search for a decent place to eat.

"Jimmy?"

James stopped and looked up from his phone, half expecting to see Cindy. "Oh, hi, Betty," James replied. He tried not to sound disappointed.

"Hi. Sorry, were you expecting someone?"

"Hm? Oh, no, I just thought you were someone else. What are you doing in New York?"

"Business trip. Do you live here?"

"No, I'm here on business too," James answered. He felt the conversation getting awkward.

Betty sighed, "Look, you'll probably say no, but do you maybe want to get a bite to eat? I was going to try this place just up the street. Supposedly they have really good pizza."

James thought for a minute. Why would Betty want to get dinner with him? Was it just familiarity? It was weird. They didn't really end their relationship on good terms, and she had been using him the whole time. Plus, he learned about the things she did to Cindy in high school. Something in his gut was telling him to have dinner with her though. "Sure, Betty. Why not?"

Betty grinned. "Great! Come on, it's this way." She pointed straight ahead of her and led James down the street.

They reached the restaurant and sat down at a table to order. James hid behind his menu, unsure of what to do or say.

"Jimmy, is something wrong? I know this is a little weird, considering things didn't end well with us, but I really am trying. I like you Jimmy." Betty said with a smile.

James lowered his menu to look at his ex-girlfriend. "I'm just a bit overwhelmed lately. I've run into so many people from my childhood, and I'm not sure how to process all of it. It's James, by the way."

"Oh, come on. I can't call you Jimmy?" Betty flirted.

This was all too familiar to James. "No," he replied bluntly.

"Oh."

"Sorry. It's just, I prefer James."

"I bet you let that Cindy Vortex call you Jimmy," Betty muttered under her breath.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing," Betty tried to sluff off her utterance.

"My relationship with Cindy Vortex is none of your business. If that's why you're here, than I might as well just leave," James raised his voice as he got up to leave.

"No, wait. I'm sorry, James. I guess I still have a little bit of jealousy toward Cindy."

"Jealousy? You were jealous of Cindy? Why?" James calmly sat back down.

"She is just so freaking smart! She graduated from Harvard with a Doctorate. Meanwhile, I barely graduated from a state school with a degree in something I couldn't care less about! And to top off all of that, she got you," Betty confessed.

"What do you mean she 'got' me?"

"Oh, please. You've been obsessed with each other since we were kids. And I foolishly thought that you could ever fall for me. But deep down, I think I knew that even though you went out with me, she would always be there. Maybe not physically, but you have a special place in your heart for her. And no one else will be able to replace that. That's why I'm jealous of Cindy."

James sat silently for several minutes, unsure how to respond. He had never thought that deeply about his relationship with Cindy. Was Betty right? He knew that he cared a lot for Cindy, which is why he had to leave Boston so quickly. James wasn't one to believe in soulmates, so why did Cindy have such a special hold on his heart?

"I'm sorry, that was too much information. It's not like we're still dating or anything, so it shouldn't bother me," Betty blushed.

"No, it's okay. I just never thought of it that way before. I guess the stereotype of men reigns true: we really don't understand our feelings. But that doesn't mean that I didn't care for you when we were dating. I mean, you were my crush since fifth grade. You were everything that I had ever dreamed of. When you dumped me, it broke my heart."

"Well this conversation definitely took a random turn," Betty tried to laugh off. The waiter placed the pizza and some plates on their table. "Why don't we get back to some light-hearted small talk?"

James smiled and pulled a slice of pizza onto his plate. "So you said you were here on business. What's your business? In fact, I don't even know what you majored in."

Betty sighed, "Business administration. I help manage companies. My boss buys out businesses and then sends in his cronies to help manage them. It's not where I thought I'd be at this time in my life. But you, mister, or should I say doctor, NASA, what brings you to "the Big Apple?"

"Just some research assistance I'm helping out with at Columbia," James lied.

"Wow. Are you hoping to get a job as a professor?"

"Not a chance."

The evening continued with light small talk that James seemed to actually enjoy. The waiter brought the bill over and James insisted on paying.

"It's really okay. I can pay for myself, James. This wasn't a date."

"Are you sure? I don't mind. Honestly."

Betty nodded. James shrugged and handed the waiter the check with the two cards.

As the waiter walked away, Betty glanced at her watch. "Wow, I didn't realize it was so late."

James glanced at his own watch and saw that it was nearly ten at night. "Oh, where are you staying? I would feel horrible if I didn't walk you. You know, just to make sure you're safe."

"The NYLO," Betty responded.

James laughed, "No way. That's where I'm staying too. It's a bit of a walk from here. Maybe we can share a cab."

Betty nodded as they both stood up to leave. James hailed a cab and gave the driver the address. Once they reached the hotel, Betty paid the driver and they wandered into the lobby of the hotel. They both awkwardly stood at the elevator, neither one pressing the call button.

"Well, I—"

"I guess—"

They both chuckled. "You first," James insisted.

"Thanks for coming to dinner with me. It was good to catch up," Betty stated. She pushed the elevator button.

"Yeah, I mean, it was a little weird at first, but it was okay," James replied. The elevator doors began to open and they both stepped inside. James hit his floor number and looked at Betty so he could get hers as well. She smiled sheepishly and hit the top floor. "Your company put you up in the suite?"

"I'm here for a while," Betty replied.

They rode in silence. The elevator chimed, and James glanced up to see they were on his floor. The doors opened. "Well, this is me, so I guess I'll see you—"

"Can I kiss you?" Betty interrupted.

James stopped and stared at Betty. The elevator door began to close. "What?" James replied in shock.

Betty began to stammer, "I mean, I, God, this is stupid! All evening I've just been thinking about kissing you. And I feel horrible for it. I know you're over me, so this is just stup—"

James interrupted Betty's stammering with a forceful kiss.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Honestly? I don't love this chapter, it was one of the reasons why I've been taking so long to update. It's here. For now. I might revise it and replace with something else. If I do that, I will keep you posted on my profile. I try to keep readers up-to-date on my stories in my profile. So look there if you are wanting to somewhat track my progress.**

 **As always, let me know what you think.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: This chapter focuses on Cindy. I wanted to share what Cindy's been doing (besides wanting to insert her back into the story). This is a shorter chapter, but it's really just a little vignette for Cindy.  
**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Dr. Vortex," Cindy's boss called. "How are things with Dr. Neutron?"

"Excuse me?" Cindy replied in shock.

Dr. Page was dumbfounded. "With the cells we donated? I assume you've been in contact."

"Oh," Cindy looked away in embarrassment. "I don't know. I haven't heard from him."

There was a long pause before Dr. Page responded. "Cindy, not that it's any of my business, but are you okay?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, it's just that after Dr. Neutron left, you called in sick for three days. And since then, you've just been moping around the lab, staying well passed your required hours."

Cindy took a minute to think. "I'm sorry. James is an old friend of mine, and I guess I just got caught up in the past. It's been a rough couple of weeks."

"If you need to take some time off, that's okay."

"No! I don't want to take time off. I need to be here."

"Cindy, your work will still be here when you get back. Take some time for yourself."

"No, I'm fine, really," Cindy replied unconvincingly.

"Fine, if you won't take time off, then I'm requiring you to take a leave of absence. Paid of course."

"Dr. Page, sorry for this outburst, but that's crazy. I can't leave. There's so much work to be done."

"And it will be here when you get back. Take a week off, get out of Boston. Go somewhere you've never been, and clear your head. Then, you can come back refreshed and you can hit the ground running," Dr. Page sympathized.

Cindy sighed but nodded in agreement. "Maybe you're right. Thank you, Marie."

"Any time. We'll see you a week from Monday."

Cindy walked out of the lab unsure of what to do. She didn't know where she could go. She didn't have many friends, and she hated to travel alone.

Cindy pulled out her phone and called the one person she had always depended on. "Hey Libby. Are you busy?"

 _"Cindy! Girl, we haven't talked in ages! How are you?"_

"Well, I'm being forced to take a vacation, so you tell me."

 _"Damn, no one pays me to take a vay-cay. What are you going to do?"_

"I was hoping you could help me out with that problem. I know we're not as close as we were, and I don't just mean distance, but you are still my best friend, and I miss talking to you."

 _"Cindy, you should come to New York! Come visit me, please? I miss you too. Our lives just went different directions, but that doesn't mean we aren't still BFFs!"_

"I don't know, Libs."

 _"Come on! I'll take a few days off of work, and we can play tourists. Or we can just stay in and pig out at my place. Whatever you want. Please?"_

"You always were great at talking me into things. What the hell, let's do it!"

 _"Yay! Okay, so I just need to talk to my boss to clear some days off. How long of a vacation do you get?"_

"A week. Please don't feel obligated to spend the entire week with me. Just get off what you can from work."

 _"Cindy, I would do anything for you! You know that. I'll do my best. See you Sunday?"_

"Okay. See you then." Cindy hung up the phone and smiled to herself. Libby always knew how to cheer her up.

* * *

Cindy yawned as the train pulled into the station. She stood up and grabbed her suitcase from the overhead bin. She walked out onto the platform and saw Libby standing there, grinning ear-to-ear. Cindy smiled and speed-walked over to her best friend.

Libby squealed. "Cindy! Oh my god, I've missed you!" She embraced Cindy in a long-awaited hug. "You look gorgeous!"

"Hi, Libby! It's so good to see you. And please, I've been on a train for four hours. I look half-decent at best," Cindy replied releasing from the hug.

"Well if this is you half-decent, you must be drop-dead gorgeous!"

"But look at you, Libs! You look amazing. Living in the Fashion Capital of the World must be a dream come true."

"It's amazing," Libby shared stories with Cindy as they wandered off of the platform where Libby hailed a cab to take them into the city.

Cindy was only half listening to Libby. She stared in awe at everything that they passed. She never imagined that New York could be so different than Boston.

"Okay girl. What do you want to do? Of course we can do whatever you want, but I was thinking we could hit up some of these really great bars in town."

"Sounds great, Libby. Can we go to your place first so I can freshen up?" Cindy glanced at her watch and saw it was 7:00 pm. She was a little tired, but didn't want to ruin Libby's fun.

"Of course, girl. We have got to look smokin' should we meet any hearts to break," Libby replied.

Cindy laughed. It felt just like old times.

The cabbie dropped the girls off in front of a chic building. Libby paid the man and helped Cindy carry her things inside. "This is where you live?" Cindy stared in awe.

"Beautiful isn't it?" Libby smiled as she pressed the elevator button. "Unfortunately, it's just temporary. My building is being remodeled, so they put all the tenants in apartments nearby. I got lucky. I could never afford to live here."

"But your Instagram posts make your life seem so glamorous. I'm actually pretty jealous," Cindy confessed.

"Please, social media is totally fake. Of course people only post the good things. My followers are supposed to think my life is glamorous, so that they are jealous. But in all honesty, I'm just getting by. It's expensive in New York, but I love my life. I wouldn't trade it for the world," Libby smiled as the elevator opened up to the appropriate floor. "Speaking of social media, what is up with you and Neutron?"

"Excuse me?" Cindy was caught off guard.

"Your post a few weeks ago back in Retroville?" Libby found the old picture on her phone and showed it to Cindy. "I mean, I knew you were visiting your parents, but Jimmy was there too? He hasn't been back to our hometown since he left for college. Why was he there anyway?"

Cindy took the phone and looked at the picture. They looked so happy. This is the exact opposite of what she needed. She felt tears forming in her eyes, but blinked them away and handed back the phone to Libby. "You know, I never got a clear answer from him as to why he was in Retroville. He said it was some 'top secret stuff for work,'" Cindy air-quoted.

Libby looked at the picture again, "#eightyearstoolong? Are you hiding something from me Cindy?"

"What? No, of course not," Cindy bit her lip.

"Cindy," Libby reprimanded.

"Fine, I'll tell you, but not in the hallway. It's a long story, are you sure you want to hear the details?"

"Sweetheart, you are mine for an entire week. I've got nothing but time," Libby smirked as she opened the door to her apartment. She held the door open for Cindy and smiled. Cindy sighed and entered the chic apartment.

"I thought you wanted to go to the bars?" Cindy mentioned, trying to get out of telling her story.

"Cindy, the bars are open until the wee hours of the morning. It's 7:30 we have time. Now sit down and tell me what's up," Libby demanded as she flopped onto the couch.

Cindy sighed and sat down next to her friend. She knew she would have to tell this story eventually, but now was not when she was planning on it.

"Come on girl, spill. I politely waited until we were face-to-face to bring it up, when what I really wanted to do was call you the second I saw that post. Now tell me what's going on!"

"Okay, okay. So I was at my parent's house when…"

Cindy told Libby everything, from inviting him for drinks, down to his sudden leave and loss of contact. "It sounds stupid, but I feel like he broke my heart. He's actually the reason my boss made me take this vacation."

"Holy shit," Libby muttered.

"Libby! Oh my god!" Cindy laughed.

"Well it's not like there's any other way to describe it!" Libby stifled a laugh. "And it's not stupid. He has selfishly had your heart since the fifth grade. You and he have been fighting these feelings for a long time. It sounds to me like you both got what you needed, and then maybe got what you deserved."

Cindy furrowed her brow in anger. "What's that supposed to mean? I deserve to have my heart broken, and he gets off scot-free?"

"No! I didn't mean it like that. I meant that you cleared the air with each other, and now you get to move on. You don't have to deal with him anymore. Sure, it comes with some heartache, but like I said, you two had a lot of stuff to work out. Your relationship growing up was complicated, and you both needed to find a way to deal with it. Apparently fucking each other was what needed to happen."

Cindy tried to hide her smile. "I suppose you're right. About the moving on. I still don't think my decisions were the best ones I've ever made."

"Hey, it takes two to tango. You deserve happiness, Cindy. Think of it this way: you get to move on and you don't have to worry about him anymore. Besides, you get to be the one that got away. He's going to have to deal with that his whole life."

Cindy didn't respond for several minutes. She wasn't sure if she was ready to move on. It didn't feel over. But she sure as hell wasn't going to tell Libby that. "Maybe you're right. Thanks, Libs. I'm glad I told you. It's been bottled up inside for weeks now. But enough about me, any men in your life?"

"The only men in my life unfortunately share a lot of the same interests as me. Working in fashion is great, but it does have a downside," Libby laughed. "Come on, let's get ready to hit the town."

* * *

 **Author's Note: I wasn't sure if this was the way I wanted to reintroduce Cindy back into the story, but it seemed the only logical way to do it.**

 **I probably could have edited this chapter more, but I've often found that the more I read my own work, the more things I find that should be fixed. I understand now why having editors is so important. Anyway, if you find anything that needs fixing, please PM me. I'm happy to make corrections.**

 **Thank you for reading!  
** **As always, let me know what you think.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: Okay, so I kind of jump back and forth between James and Cindy in this one. I hope it's not too confusing. If you need a refresher (since it's been so long) go back a couple of chapters to catch up on what James has been up to.  
**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

James stepped back from his sudden kiss with Betty. They both stood quiet for a moment before the elevator doors opened up on the top floor.

Betty cleared her throat as she stepped off of the elevator, "Looks like you missed your floor. Do you want to come in?" Betty tried to play the innocent card to no avail.

"Betty, you and I both know that is not a very good idea. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I just got caught up in the moment," James replied glancing at the floor.

"Right," Betty tried to laugh off. "I guess I'll just see you around. Bye, James."

James nodded and hit his floor number again. As the doors closed, Betty gave a small wave. James sighed as the elevator started moving again. "What the hell was I thinking?" James muttered to himself. "God, what is wrong with me? I don't even want to get back together with her. Why do I always do this to myself?"

The elevator stopped once again on James's floor. He dug through his wallet looking for his key card, and in the process, he found the note that Cindy had written him: _Thanks for always being there, even when I didn't deserve it._ He wasn't exactly sure why he had kept it, but it was less than truthful now. After he left Boston, he had not even tried to make contact with Cindy. But, she hadn't made an effort either. But it wasn't her job to contact him. James was the one who had left with a half-thought excuse. He tucked the note back into his wallet as a reminder to never let anyone back into his life. He had moved on, and it needed to stay that way. He opened his room and was ready to get into bed when he saw Eustace sitting at the desk.

"It's about time you showed up, Neutron," Eustace smiled.

"What are you doing here? And how did you get in?" James rolled his eyes.

"Oh, please. You think I would just pay for this room and not take the second key card for myself? I need to have access to you at all times."

"Well, at least buy me dinner first," James pretended to swoon.

"Oh, fuck off, Neutron. What have you got for me?"

"What do you mean?" James was genuinely confused.

"Your progress on our little experiment?"

"I haven't even started," James admitted.

"Well what they fuck have you been doing these past few days?"

"Look, Strych. This is going to take some time. Be patient. I'm in the blueprint phase of it right now. I will get it to you when it's ready. Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get some sleep." James motioned Eustace to the door.

Eustace huffed and stormed out of the room.

James sighed. There was no way he would be able to sleep knowing that Eustace could let himself in at any time. He changed into something nicer and headed downstairs to the bar in the hotel. He needed to get the taste of Betty out of his mouth.

* * *

"Cindy, come on! Let me see," Libby begged. She had let Cindy borrow one of her dresses for the evening and Cindy wouldn't show her.

"No, I feel…" Cindy couldn't find the right words. "slutty."

"You did not just call my one-of-a-kind Vera Wang 'slutty!' If you don't come out here, I'm coming in whether you're dressed or not."

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry. Slutty wasn't the right word. But this is way out of my comfort zone. I would never wear anything like this. And did you say 'one-of-a-kind?' Libby, I can't wear this! What if I ruin it?"

"You won't ruin it! Besides, it was a gift from Vera. It's too small in my bust anyway. And of course it's out of your comfort zone. That's the point! Embrace life, this is a new you! Now let me see you before I rip this closet door off its hinges."

Cindy took a deep breath and opened the door. She fidgeted with the skirt of the dress tugging it down, and then pulled up on the bodice to keep it from revealing too much, realizing it would have to be one or the other. "Well, what do you think?"

"Oh. My. God. Cindy that dress was practically made for you. You look gorgeous. You have to wear it," Libby stared in awe.

"Isn't that what I'm doing right now?"

"I mean, like, you don't have a choice now. You are wearing that tonight."

Cindy had yet to see herself in the dress. She knew that Libby would never lie to her, but she had to see it for herself. She closed her eyes and turned to the mirror. She opened her eyes and audibly gasped. She had never looked, or felt so stunning. "Oh, wow," was all she could say.

"I told you!" Libby smirked. "Come on, let's go!"

* * *

"Can you excuse me, Cindy? I have to use the restroom," Libby said getting up.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Cindy asked, though she was really pleading to not be left alone.

"If you come with me, we'll lose this table. People are like vultures: they'll see us leave and then pounce right on the table before it's even cleaned off," Libby said as she walked away.

Cindy sighed in frustration. She never did well in bars by herself.

"Is this seat taken?" a male voice asked from behind her.

Cindy spoke as she turned around, "Yeah, actually, my friend is just—Jimmy?"

"Cindy? Wow. What are you doing here?" James replied in shock.

"I'm visiting Libby. What are you doing here?"

"Business. I'm doing some research over at Columbia. You look amazing, by the way. That dress is stunning on you."

Cindy smiled, pulling up the dress to hide her cleavage. "Thanks, it's Libby's. How are things going? Dr. Page was asking about your work, and I didn't know what to tell her." Cindy motioned for James to sit down.

James sat down. "It's fine. Look, I'm sorry about how things ended in Boston. I shouldn't have taken off like that, but I was stressed, and frankly a little scared."

"Scared?"

"Yeah, I mean, we went from not talking for eight plus years to so much, so fast. I didn't know what to think."

"So leaving without an excuse and then never talking to me again was your solution?" Cindy could feel herself getting frustrated.

"Yeah, that was pretty stupid. I am sorry. Let me make it up to you. Can I buy you a drink?" James offered.

Cindy paused for a moment. "Jimmy, I—"

"Cindy, who's your friend—my god. Is that Jimmy Neutron?" Libby replied standing next to Cindy. She crossed her arms in annoyance.

James smiled. "Hey, Libby. How's it going?"

"I'm doing just fine. Thanks for asking," Libby replied through gritted teeth. Cindy began picking at her nails out of nervousness.

There was a long awkward silence before Cindy burst in, "Jimmy is doing research over at Columbia. Isn't that interesting?"

"Fascinating," Libby answered in a dull tone. She had yet to break eye contact with James.

"Speaking of," James finally said. "I should probably get going. I've got to be at the lab early tomorrow. I'll see you around, Libby." He got up from his seat.

"Uh-huh," Libby muttered.

As James reached Cindy's side of the table he leaned down, grabbed onto Cindy's upper thigh and whispered in her ear, "Let's take a raincheck on those drinks. See you around." He gave her leg a gentle squeeze and then he was gone.

"Um. What was that? Did you know he was here? Is that why you came to visit me?" Libby started interrogating Cindy.

"I swear to God I had no idea he was in New York. After you left, he came up from behind me. He probably thought I was some hot blonde girl. He was just as shocked as I was," Cindy began to explain.

"Okay well first of all, you are a hot blonde girl. And second, what in the world did he whisper in your ear?"

Cindy's cheeks flushed. "He wanted to buy me a drink." Before Libby could interrupt, Cindy continued. "I was going to say no, and that's when you showed up. He said he wanted to take a raincheck."

"Not a chance in hell. I can't believe he had the nerve to ask you out after what happened. You're not going to go, right?" Cindy didn't answer right away, so Libby sighed heavily, "Cindy, you are too smart to be going down this road again. Give me your phone."

"What? Why?" Cindy asked clutching on to her cell phone tightly.

"Well, the first thing I'm going to do is tell that son-of-a-bitch off, and then I'm going to delete his number from your phone. After that, I'm going to go throw your phone off of the Brooklyn Bridge! Cindy you need to think about this. Three hours ago you told me how much he hurt you."

"Libby, I'm not going to have a drink with him. I just need time to process. Don't forget that just three hours ago I realized how important he was in my life. I'm in the process of moving on, but it's going to take time."

Libby sighed. "You're right. Sorry I overreacted. I just care so god-damned much about you. I don't want you to get hurt again."

"Thanks, Libby. You're a true friend. And I hate to do this, but can we go home? The mood has kind of been killed."

Libby nodded. "Of course, whatever you want. We can go back to my place and watch a trashy movie and eat ice cream out of the carton. Let me just pay for the drinks." Libby wandered over to the bar to pay.

Cindy pulled out her phone, half tempted to text James and tell him that she wanted to cash in the rain check. She resisted her urge and tucked her phone back into her purse.

"Okay, babe. Let's go," Libby walked back over to get Cindy so they could head home.

* * *

The DVD menu screen started over for what was probably the fiftieth time. Cindy and Libby had fallen asleep in the middle of the movie and Cindy groggily sat up looking for the remote for the television. She couldn't find it, so shook Libby lightly to wake her up.

"Ugh, what?" Libby mumbled still half asleep.

"I can't find the remote to turn the movie off," Cindy whispered.

Libby lifted her hips slightly and fished the remote from underneath her legs. She sat up and turned the television off. "Well, I'm awake now."

"Sorry," Cindy muttered.

Libby shrugged and started gathering the food garbage that was lying around. Cindy started to help clean up as she thought about how independent Libby was. Libby was living on her own in a big city and she seemed genuinely happy.

"Libby, do you ever think about what you would have done if you didn't get that internship senior year?" Cindy asked as she threw away the wrappers she'd picked up.

"Well," Libby replied sitting back on the couch, "I guess I still would have applied to NYU and hopefully would still be in a position similar to now. Why?"

"I was just thinking about how different life could have been for all of us, had our paths gone different directions," Cindy replied.

"How do you mean?"

"Well, like if I hadn't been accepted to Harvard, I don't know what I would be doing. Or if you didn't get your internship and stayed in Retroville for your last semester of high school, what would you have done?" Cindy was trying to lead Libby to a conversations she knew her friend didn't want to have, but felt it was a necessary conversation.

Libby caught on to Cindy's game. "I know this is about Sheen, and I don't want to talk about it."

"He's doing really well now, Libby," Cindy whispered.

"I know."

"You do? How?" Cindy was surprised.

"He's called me a few times. I never answer, but he leaves me voicemails. I'm glad he's cleaned up," Libby explained. "But what he did was selfish, he knew how I felt about all that stuff, but he did it anyway. He knows that it is something that I can't forgive."

"Libby, it's been eight years. He's changed. And if he's called you, clearly it's important to him that you know. Don't you think he deserves at least a reply from you?"

"You're probably right, but I'm not ready to just forgive so quickly."

"I didn't say you had to forgive him, I just think that you owe him a reply, at least so he knows that you acknowledged his progress."

"Cindy, it's like two in the morning, and I'm pretty sure I'm still drunk, do I have to do this now?"

"I didn't mean now!" Cindy laughed. "Just while I'm here, this is something that I want you to do."

"Okay. I'm going to bed. Are you good to sleep out here? There are extra blankets in the coat closet."

Cindy nodded. "Yeah, I'll be good, thanks. Goodnight."

Libby walked into her bedroom and closed the door, leaving Cindy alone in the dark. She picked up her phone to use as a light. When she woke her phone, she saw she had received a text a couple of minutes ago from James.

 _James: Hi_

Cindy thought about just going to sleep, but she was going to blame alcohol and lack of sleep for her poor judgement as she replied.

 _Cindy: It's 2 in the morning. Why are you texting me?_

 _James: Why are you replying?_

She could picture the smirk on his face as she thought up how to respond.

 _Cindy: Touché. What do you want?_

 _James: Just wanted to talk. It was nice seeing you tonight._

 _Cindy: Stop. Just don't even start._

 _James: What are you talking about?_

 _Cindy: I'm not having this conversation in a message thread._

Cindy waited for a reply but James didn't respond. Instead her phone started buzzing alerting her to a new phone call. It was James.

Cindy answered the phone. She didn't even say hello she just started talking, "I'm not having this conversation on the phone either."

James was taken aback, but responded anyway, _"Just tell me what's wrong. Please."_

"I can't deal with your roller coaster of emotions. Sometimes I feel like you want to be friends again. Other times it feels like you want to be more than friends. And then you act like you don't care about me. I'm done."

 _"Please, just let me explain,"_ James pleaded.

"I told you, I'm not having this conversation on the phone."

 _"Then will you please meet me somewhere? I need to explain myself._

"I don't need to hear your excuses. I'm done with your lies," Cindy was about to hang up when she heard James sigh in defeat.

 _"No lies, I promise. I'll tell you anything you want to hear."_

Cindy pondered for a moment before answering, "Fine. There's a 24-hour coffee shop around the corner from Libby's place. Meet me there in twenty minutes."

James smiled to himself and replied, _"Okay, great. There's just one problem though."_

Cindy sighed with frustration, "What?"

 _"I don't know where Libby lives."_

Cindy rolled her eyes, "Okay, I'll text you the address of the coffee shop." She ended the call, copy and pasted the address into a message for James, and changed into something other than pajamas.

* * *

Cindy had been sitting only a few minutes before the coffee shop door was opened by James. He did a quick scan of the dining room before recognizing Cindy's famous ponytail. He smiled as he walked over. When he finally faced her, his smile disappeared. Cindy looked upset.

After a few minutes of silence, Cindy finally said, "Aren't you going to sit down? I'm here at three in the morning because of you."

James sat down, but still said nothing. He wasn't sure what to say.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on, or do I have to guess?" Cindy asked harshly.

"I don't know what you want me to say," James replied.

"Before you say anything, I want to apologize for Libby. Before we headed out tonight, I told her everything that happened. Everything."

James laughed lightly, "I'm not dumb, Vortex. I figured that out as soon as she saw me. So, what do you want to know?"

"Why were you really back in Retroville?" Cindy asked.

"I—" James started but then stopped himself.

"No lies. You promised," Cindy shot eye daggers at James.

James nodded. "I know. I really was back to visit my parents, but the honest reason why I was there was because I was hoping I would find something to help me get my mojo back."

"What are you talking about?"

"I feel like I'm stuck. I haven't felt the joy of being in the lab in a long time. I guess I was hoping I would find something that would spark the creativity back into me," James explained. This was partially true. James did feel bored and felt he had reached his limit.

Cindy nodded, "Did you find what you were looking for?"

"Sort of. It's a work in progress."

Cindy asked another question, "Why are you really in New York?"

"You don't believe that I'm really assisting in research at Columbia?"

"Well, it's three in the morning and you're here with me, you claimed you had to be in the lab early, yet you were at a bar and you already looked slightly trashed, so you tell me?"

"Okay, Sherlock Holmes, you got me. I was trying to spare you the story of my pathetic life, but you asked for it: I got fired from NASA."

"You what? Jimmy, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to pry," Cindy grabbed James's hand to console him.

"It's okay. I said I would tell you the truth. I'm actually on leave without pay. There isn't enough money for me to continue my project, so I'm on leave until we get some more funding."

"Well, that's not so bad. It still sucks though. So then what brings you to New York?"

"Promise me that you won't yell," James said sternly.

"Oh please, I have better control over my emotions now. I'm not a child."

"I'm working for Eustace Strych."

Cindy opened her mouth to yell, but remembered her promise. Instead, she clenched her fists and took a deep breath, "Really? Jimmy, nothing good can come from this. He's shady and arrogant. I hope you know what you're getting into."

"Trust me, I know. I don't need a lecture from you. I need money, and Strych has it."

"I'm not trying to lecture you. I just don't think it's a good idea for you to get involved."

"You wanted me to tell you the truth, and I did. I didn't ask for your opinion," James was getting upset.

"Fine, then you won't have to worry about hearing it anymore. Goodbye, James." Cindy stood up and walked out the door.

James slammed his fist down onto the table and sighed angrily, "Damn it!" He stood up and stormed out the door. He looked all around looking for Cindy, but she was nowhere in sight. He sighed in defeat and headed back to his hotel.

James pushed the elevator call button and waited for the elevator to arrive. Tonight had been a total bust. Cindy was even more upset with him than before, and Eustace was sure to have his head if he didn't get him something soon.

The elevator arrived and James stepped through. He pushed the floor number and the doors closed. The elevator began to rise. It moved slowly. When the elevator finally reached his desired floor, James stepped out and looked down the hallway. There was only one room on this floor, and he knew who was staying in it.

James walked toward the large doors of the presidential suite. He wasn't sure why he was here. What did he expect to happen? He knocked lightly, knowing full well that the occupant would be asleep.

To his surprise, the door opened rather quickly.

"James? What are you doing here?" Betty asked as she finished tying the sash on her silk robe.

"Hi, Betty. Can I come in?"

Betty smiled and stepped out of the way for James to enter. He returned her smile as he walked through the threshold and Betty closed the door.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Not my favorite, but I think you waited long enough. My favorite part of the story is coming up soon, and I am excited for you to read it! Thank you for being so patient with me.**

 **Thank you for reading!  
** **As always, let me know what you think.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Wow, so many of you were a bit frustrated after the last chapter, and I don't think this is going to help. ;)**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

James woke up and looked around the unfamiliar room. He had no idea where he was. He sat up and felt something shift next to him. He looked over and saw Betty sound asleep. James tensed as his memories came flooding back. "Fuck!" he mouthed to himself. He eased his way out of the bed and began gathering his things.

He was just about to sneak out when Betty said, "Morning, Jimmy."

James cringed before turning around and replying, "Betty. I hate to leave so suddenly, but I've got to get going."

"Before you go, do you mind telling me why you came over in the first place?" Betty stepped out of bed and slipped into her silk robe. She walked into the sitting room and sat on the couch, motioning for James to join her.

James sighed and sat down. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come over. What I did was low. I was angry and upset, so I came to you because it was convenient."

Betty stared at James as she spoke, "I see. It's not that different than what I did to you though. Karma's a bitch, and I think I finally got what I deserved. What were you so angry about?"

James chuckled, "What do you think? Cindy of course. I ran into her last night after you and I came back here after dinner. She and I both said some things that shouldn't have been said. She stormed off and I was left feeling like a moron."

Betty placed her hand on James's leg. "Hey, you know what? Cindy's a bitch. If she can't see how much effort you put into your friendship with her, then fuck it. She doesn't deserve you."

James moved Betty's hand away. "How can you say that? Cindy didn't do anything wrong. I've been trying to mend things for a long time. I'm not just going to throw that away." James stood up. "Does this place have a coffee maker? I desperately need some."

Betty nodded and pointed him in the direction of the kitchen. James nodded thanks and wandered out of the sitting room.

Betty sat on the couch examining her nails. She peered through the doorway to see that James had made it to the kitchen before she started digging through his bag. She wasn't really sure what she was looking for, but she needed to find something.

"Do you want any coffee?" James hollered.

"No, I don't really like it. Thanks though," Betty replied, still rustling through his bag.

She finally stumbled upon a vial. She looked at it curiously. There were no markings on it so she wasn't sure what it was. She dug through in the same area she had found the vial to see if there were any more clues. There were three or four more vials along with a paper outlining research of some kind.

As she skimmed through the paper, she heard the coffee maker sputter out, signaling that her time was almost up. She quickly shoved the paper and one of the vials behind the couch cushion just as James walked back into the room.

"Sorry for my outburst. I guess you were right last night at dinner: Cindy is special to me, and I have a hard time when people criticize her," James said as he sat down.

"No, you're right. It's not my place to tell you how to deal with your friends." Betty answered.

They sat in silence for several minutes before James finally said, "Well, I really should be going." He picked up his bag, took the coffee cup back to the kitchen and turned to say goodbye to Betty, who had followed him into the kitchen.

"Don't be a stranger. I'm here if you want to chat. Or do other things," Betty winked.

James laughed, "Thanks Betty. I'm glad I ran into you." He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek before opening the door and leaving.

"Me too," Betty muttered to herself as she headed back to get the vial she'd hidden. *****

* * *

James entered his own hotel room in need of a shower and more than a couple hours of sleep. He put the Do Not Disturb sign on the door handle, plugged in his dead phone, and walked into the bathroom to shower.

As he turned the water off, he heard his phone ringing. He hoped it was Cindy and tied his towel around his waist and grabbed his phone. He didn't recognize the number, but answered anyway.

"Hello? This is James Neutron."

 _"Jimmy? Thank god you still have the same phone number!"_

"Who is this?"

 _"Libby. I'm actually kind of offended that you don't have my number saved."_

James rolled his eyes. "What did you need, Libby?"

 _"Is Cindy with you? She's not answering her phone. I heard her sneak in early this morning, and then I woke up to a note saying that she went out, and that she was sorry. I haven't heard from her. I'm getting worried."_

"No, sorry. Cindy isn't with me. Last I saw her she was storming out of the coffee shop. I assumed she went back to your place. Maybe she went for a walk in Central Park or something."

 _"You're probably right. I just know that she wasn't very happy last night, so I was worried."_

"I'm sure she's fine. Will you let me know when she gets home? If not, I'll be worried too."

 _"Yes, of course. Thanks Jimmy. Bye._

"Bye," James hung up the phone and smiled to himself as he saved Libby's number to his contact list.

James woke from his nap ready to head to the lab. Now that his mutated cells were complete, he could work on the anthrax. Eustace was an impatient man, and James needed to get started before Eustace took his money elsewhere.

James started walking toward Columbia University. It was quite a walk, but James didn't feel like taking a cab. His phone chimed, signaling that he had a new text message.

 _Libby: Hey nerd-boy. Cindy made it back. You were right. She was in Central Park. Are you sure you weren't with her? ;)_

 _James: I'm glad she's okay. Honest to god, I was not with her this morning. Did she say anything about last night?_

 _Libby: Not really, but I'm not done yelling at her for sneaking out to see you last night._

 _James: Oh. Sorry._

 _Libby: You should be sorry._

 _James: Believe me, I am. Please tell her that I'm sorry for yelling at her._

 _Libby: K._

James continued his walk to campus without any more interruptions. As he entered the building, he sent a quick text message to Eustace, practically guaranteeing a finished project by the end of the day.

James worked furiously in the lab, but he couldn't get the bacteria to react the way he wanted. He was close. A couple more days, and he was positive he would have a completed product.

James looked at his watch. It was just past ten p.m. He cleaned up the lab and locked up. He turned around and practically ran into Eustace.

"Watch where you're going, Jimmy!" Eustace scoffed, wiping invisible dust from his sleeve.

"What are you doing here?" James asked, annoyed.

"You said you would have the sample ready for me today. Let me see it."

"Well, it's not quite finished," James began to explain.

"James, I expected this project to be well in the works by now, but you've only just started. I am not a patient man. Bring me a completed product tomorrow, before I change my mind," Eustace stated.

"You forget that this is my plan. I can do this without you," James said.

"Not without my money you can't. How do you expect to take over the world when you can't afford to fund your own research? I will have that bacteria tomorrow by midnight. Don't test me." Eustace turned around and walked out the door.

James rolled his eyes and pulled his phone out to call Cindy. He figured she was probably still mad at him, so he wanted to apologize to her. The phone rang twice, then went to voicemail. He hung up and tried Libby's phone. Her phone rang until it went to voicemail as well. _They must be out having fun_. James thought. He'd try again tomorrow. He began to walk back to the hotel and realized that there was no reason why he couldn't enjoy one last night of fun. In a matter of days, he and Eustace would begin their plans for world domination, and it would be a while before he would be able to relax.

He called Betty. Cindy and Libby were obviously busy, and he knew that Betty wanted to hang out with him. It felt like high school all over again.

 _"Hello?"_ Betty answered after a couple of rings.

"Hey, Betty. It's James. What are you up to?"

 _"Not much. I'm just in my hotel room."_

"Oh. Well, I know it's late, but would you want to do something?"

 _"Something like…"_ Betty teased.

"Something like grab a bite to eat," James laughed.

 _"I already ate, but I could go for some dessert,"_ Betty replied.

"Dessert like…" James mimicked.

 _"Dessert like cheesecake or ice cream,"_ Betty giggled.

"Perfect. I'll come pick you up in about twenty minutes. I'm still at the lab."

James ended the call after saying his goodbyes and quickly headed back to the hotel. He called Cindy once more, but her phone rang twice, and went to voicemail. _She's screening my calls._ James thought. He sighed and shoved his phone back into his pocket.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Well, this chapter is a bit shorter, but there's a bit of plot development going on.**

 ***I have a short story brewing in my head that gives a bit of backstory behind Betty. I want to write it, but I don't want to post it until this story is complete. I feel like it would give away too much. Maybe after I post a few more chapters. Let me know if you are interested!**

 **Thank you for reading!  
** **As always, let me know what you think.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: New chapter. I'll have more to say after you finish reading.**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

Betty and James were in a secluded corner of the restaurant enjoying a slice of cheesecake.

"Betty, I want to apologize again for last night. It was wrong for me to come over and take advantage of you like that," James said.

"No apology necessary. I wasn't taken advantage of," Betty replied.

"Betty, I'm serious. I shouldn't be fooling around with you. It isn't fair to you or me. And based on our history, we don't really have a great record of having a fair and honest relationship with each other."

"I'm not really looking for fair or honest. I didn't say I was looking for a relationship either. I just wanted to sleep with you," Betty admitted.

James sat in silence. Betty smiled as she licked whipped cream off of her finger. James rolled his eyes at Betty's attempt to seduce him.

"Stop being so serious. I'm just having some fun. No one said you couldn't have fun," Betty said as she placed a dab of whipped cream on James's nose.

James smiled as he wiped his nose clean. "I suppose you're right."

"Come on," Betty grabbed James's hand and pulled him out of the restaurant.

"Where are we going?"

"Back to my room," Betty stated.

* * *

When the elevator reached Betty's floor, James and Betty almost missed it. They were in a deep kiss and didn't hear the elevator chime. They broke their kiss long enough to walk down the hallway to Betty's room, but as soon as the door was closed, hands moved quickly to remove any outer article of clothing.

As they entered the bedroom, Betty pushed James down on the bed and straddled his hips. She began sucking on his neck. James looked up at the ceiling, wondering why he was here. Was this really what he wanted? No. He wanted to be with Cindy. But he had screwed things up. And besides that, Betty wasn't in this for a relationship. She just wanted to fool around, something James was tired of.

Betty began to pepper kisses down James's chest and abdomen. She looked up at James and smiled. James closed his eyes and pictured Cindy in his mind.

"What's wrong, James?" Betty asked, sitting up.

"This isn't right," James said.

"Neither of us is in a relationship, so we're not cheating on anybody. We both just want to have a bit of fun. Is that so wrong?"

"I think I should go."

Betty rolled off of James and sat next to him. "Okay, if that's how you really feel. I just thought you could use some fun."

"I know. But I'm not being honest with myself. I think it's better if I just go. Sorry to waste your time."

James stood up and gathered his things. "I'll see you around, Betty."

"Whatever," Betty rolled her eyes, her mood shifting.

"Betty, I'm sorry, I—"

"It's fine, James," Betty interrupted crossly. "Clearly I just need to get over you, because you are so obviously over me. Goodbye." Betty slammed the door in James's face.

"Shit!" Betty stormed back into her bedroom and checked her phone. She had a message from her boss: _Are you finished yet? I need you down here. Now._

James left Betty's floor in a confused daze. He knew that Betty would be upset, but she was furious. He decided not to think about it. James knew he would need all day in the lab if he was going to finish by midnight the following night, so he went to his room to get some sleep.

* * *

James glanced at his watch as he walked out of the campus laboratory. It was just before midnight and he was pretty sure he finally had something that could work. He pulled out his phone to call Eustace to tell him the bacteria was ready, and saw that he had a voicemail (as a rule, he never brought his phone into the lab. It helped him stay focused without the distraction). The message was from a blocked number and was left several hours ago. James tapped the screen of his phone to listen to the message.

 _"Hi, Neutron. It's Cindy. Listen, I can't talk long, but something's happened. I didn't know where else to turn. I'm not even supposed to have this phone, let alone be talking to you. I was hoping you would pick up, since you won't be able to call me back, but I guess this is going to have to do. I think I'm in trouble. And not the kind of trouble we used to get into as kids. I don't know how to fix it. I'm not even sure why I'm telling you this. I guess I was hoping that you would be able to come up with a solution like you always did. I've been taken, and I have no idea where I am, or why I was taken. I'm really scared, Jimmy. Please, you have to help—someone's coming."_ There were muffled sounds as the phone was hidden, and Cindy pleaded with whoever came in the room " _No, please, I'm sorry! Ow! Please, stop!_ "

 _"Who are you talking to, hm? Listen, whoever this is, don't try anything. By the time you find Cindy it will be too late."_

The message clicked off. James dropped the phone to the ground, shattering the screen. There was no denying who the second voice belonged to: Eustace Strych.

* * *

 **Author's Note: This chapter, although short, was fun to write. It was one of those ideas that came to me in the middle of the night and I had to write it down before I forgot it. This is a focal point in this story that really helped me discover where this story was going. I wasn't sure if this was where I wanted to end, but a cliffhanger is always a favorite of mine! ;)**

 **Thank you for reading!  
** **As always, let me know what you think.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: New chapter. That was super fast! I tried to make this chapter longer since the last few were so short. It's not the longest, but it is full of fun plot stuff!**

 **Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

James picked up his phone off the ground in a panic. He hoped that he could still make a phone call. He sighed in relief as he carefully scrolled through his contacts. He clicked on Libby's name and waited for her to answer. She didn't. He tried Cindy's phone, hoping that this was just a bad dream. It went straight to voicemail.

"No, no, no, no, no!" James began to panic as he tried Libby's phone again. Still no answer. "Damn it!" James's watch beeped midnight, and at that same moment his phone chimed a new message from Eustace: _Time's up, Neutron._

Jimmy immediately called Eustace in a rage.

 _"James! Unfortunate timing. I needed that bacteria and you didn't deliver."_ Eustace patronized.

"What did you do with Cindy?" James yelled.

 _"Cindy? That was you she called? Well that makes this even more interesting."_

"She has nothing to do with this. Let her go and leave her alone."

 _"No, James. She has a lot more to do with this than you realize. But I don't have time to discuss this with you right now. I have a date with a certain green-eyed doctor. Ta-ta!"_

James hurled his phone down the sidewalk in anger. Because of that stupid phone call, Eustace was going to be a lot harder to get ahold of now. James didn't know what to do. He thought about going to _Strych Enterprise,_ but the building would be closed. He knew that Eustace would be screening his calls, so there was no point trying to call him. He would just have to come forward with the anthrax, and hope that Eustace would trade Cindy's freedom for it. There was nothing he could do tonight, so he picked up his shattered phone and headed back to his hotel to try and get some sleep. James sighed in frustration. He should have known something like this would happen.

James couldn't sleep knowing that somewhere Cindy was being held against her will. He didn't want to imagine the awful things that could be happening. He tried to think of all the good times he had with Cindy growing up. He thought back to the first time Cindy ever said anything remotely nice to him.

 _"'Jimmy you there? Look, don't listen to them, they're just scared. Are you okay?'_

 _'Yeah, I'm fine.'_

 _'Don't be so hard on yourself. We'll get out of this._

 _'Okay, so you made a mistake. Beating yourself up isn't going to fix anything. You know, I was the smartest kid in school until you came along. And, I admit you know more about some things than I do. But I know one thing that you don't seem to get. And that's that were never getting out of here without you. So why don't you buck up mister! And put that big brain of yours back to work…'_

 _'Um, Cindy? Wh-Why are you being so nice to me?'_

 _'Because there's a bunch of kids in here that need you. And I do too.'"_

Even though he would have never admitted it at the time, it was from that moment on that James knew Cindy would always be an important part of his life. She became the conscious mind behind his inventions, which James often mistook for nagging, but was necessary in order for his inventions to work properly. She was the driving force behind his work, whether he was trying to stay ahead of her, or trying to impress her in their early teen years. When Cindy stopped talking to him, his inventions slowed down. He didn't have a reason to continue.

James's alarm started beeping. It was seven in the morning. James had not slept at all. James made a mental list of things he needed to do:

1\. Buy a new phone (in his fit of rage, James had massacred his old one).

2\. Get ahold of Eustace and give in to demands.

3\. Try not to kill Eustace upon meet up.

James packed his bag and headed out. He had to get things done before it was too late.

* * *

James turned on his new phone and punched in Eustace's office number. He knew that Eustace wouldn't answer his cell phone, but his office was bound to answer.

 _"Strych Enterprise. How may I direct your call?"_ Eustace's assistant answered.

"I need to speak to Eustace Strych, please," James said as calmly as he could.

 _"I'm sorry, Mr. Strych is extremely busy today. He's not taking any calls. Would you like to leave a message?"_

"No, I would not like to leave a message; I would like to talk to Eustace, please."

 _"Sir, I can't transfer you through. I'm under strict orders."_

"Can you just tell him that Neutron is willing to make a deal?"

 _"Okay…one moment please."_

James waited for several minutes. Finally, the phone was reconnected.

 _"James! Congratulations, you found me. You are a clever boy. You knew that I wouldn't answer my cell phone. I must say, I'm quite impressed. I don't know how you do it, but my secretary is quite infatuated with you. Somehow you always convince her to let you through."_

"I didn't call to shoot the breeze, Strych. Are you willing to make a deal or not?"

 _"Well I wouldn't be on the phone right now if I wasn't, now would I? The question is what do you want to trade?"_

"I'll give you the anthrax if you let Cindy go."

 _"How do I know that you actually have it? You weren't able to get it to me on time."_

"I guess you're just going to have to trust me."

 _"Trust you? I don't think so. I'll tell you what. Since I'm in such a good mood, I'm willing to speak with you in person. Come down to the office, unarmed, with the anthrax. If you really have it, then I'll let Cindy go. If you don't, well, somethings are better as a surprise. Do we have a deal, Neutron?"_

"Deal."

 _"Wonderful! Come by in about an hour. I need to get things prepared for your arrival. Cindy will be so excited to see you!"_ With that, Eustace hung up.

James needed to come up with a plan. Knowing Eustace, James was sure that things wouldn't be as straight forward as he made them sound.

James was kicking himself for unintentionally getting Cindy involved. If he hadn't reconnected with her, none of this would have happened.

* * *

About an hour later, James was walking through the front doors of _Strych Enterprise._

"Dr. Neutron! It's such a pleasure to see you again!" the receptionist smiled. "Mr. Strych is expecting you. You can head right on up."

James offered a faux smile as he walked passed the front desk toward the elevators.

As he rode up to the fortieth floor, James went over his plan in his head. He was just going to be as nice as possible, ask to see Cindy to make sure she was alright, give Eustace the anthrax once he saw Cindy was safe, and leave with her. He would figure out a way to stop Eustace at a later time. He figured Eustace was smart enough to hold off use of the bacteria until there was a proper antibiotic to offer people in exchange for world power.

The elevator began slowing. James was almost to his destination. He started thinking about the situation he was walking into. Cindy could be dead for all he knew. It was a morbid thought, but James had to consider that it might be a possibility. He was making himself angry.

By the time the elevator stopped, James was furious. He marched out of the elevator over to the end of the building with the big oak doors. He didn't stop. Not even when the assistant greeted him. His plan was completely gone from his mind.

"Where is Cindy?" James stormed into Eustace's office.

"All in good time, James," Eustace replied with a wicked smile.

"Tell me where she is."

"If you would learn a bit of patience, you'll get what you ask for. She will be along shortly," Eustace replied nonchalantly.

Not a moment later, a secret side door was opened by the floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. Out walked two of Eustace's faithful followers with Cindy in tow. She was weak, half-conscious, and bruised all over. The two employees shoved Cindy to the ground and walked away.

"What did you do to her?" James yelled.

"Me? It was your mutated cells that she was injected with," Eustace gave James another wicked smile.

"How did you…?" James faded out, utterly confused.

"You know you really shouldn't leave your experiments and their instructions just lying around in your bag. Someone could easily find them after something like, I don't know, a night of fucking," Eustace explained.

James thought for a moment before whispering, "Betty?"

"Isn't she great?" Eustace laughed. "She so cleverly worked her way back into your life. You had no idea she was working for me. It was even her idea to kidnap Cindy and use your cells on her. Betty made a perfect little pawn, don't you think?"

"What did you do to Cindy?" James tried to stay focused on the current problem. He'd have to deal with Betty later.

"I told you, she was injected with the mutant cells that you created, and well after that, the brainwashing was simple."

James ran over to Cindy and knelt beside her. "Cindy, Cindy, can you hear me?"

"Jimmy?" she replied weakly, trying to sit up.

James helped her sit up. "Yeah, yeah, it's me. I'm right here. I'm sorry this happened. But I promise, I'm going to fix—"

James was stopped short by Cindy shoving him to the ground with her hands closing around his throat.

* * *

Cindy's hands closed tighter and tighter around James's throat. Her eyes were fierce. James's eyes grew large as he tried to claw her hands away from his neck.

Eustace snapped his fingers, "That's enough, Cynthia." Cindy's hands fell away from James's throat. She continued to glare at James.

James gasped for air and started coughing. When he finally caught his breath he turned to Eustace and said, "What did you do to her?"

Eustace looked puzzled, "I brainwashed—have you not been paying attention? You're not in charge anymore. I am. And since I have," he pointed to Cindy, "her, I can do whatever the fuck I want." Eustace pushed a button on his desk and two security guards came in and grabbed James. They started walking toward the door as James tried to pry his arms from their grips.

"We made a deal, Strych!" James shouted.

Eustace laughed, "Yes, but this way I get what I want, and you get nothing. Thank you for the anthrax by the way. It's been a pleasure conquering the world with you. Ta-ta!" One of the security guards grabbed James's bag, which contained the bacteria, before tossing him to the floor, and slamming the door in James's face.

James stood quickly and tried to get back into the office, which was now locked.

"Eustace!" James yelled. He began pounding on the door, knowing it was useless. "Dammit! James rested his head against the hard oak as he tried to think of his next move. He couldn't go to the police. His notes on the mutant cells had his name on them. It wouldn't matter to the cops that Eustace had stolen them, only that they had been illegal manufactured, and used to harm a person. There was no proof that Eustace was the one who had used it, and James's alibi was that he was in a lab illegally creating another harmful substance. James would go to prison for sure.

James contemplated leaving the building. If he left, there was a big chance he would not be let back in. But if he stayed, he had no way of finding a way to help Cindy. He wandered over to the bathroom around the corner for a quiet place to think.

James splashed cold water on his face to try and calm himself down. Just as he was about to leave, he heard Eustace's assistant talking. He paused to listen.

"Hello, Miss Quinlan. Welcome back," the assistant said.

"Yeah, whatever. Is Eustace here?" Betty replied.

"Yes, but unfortunately he is rather busy at the moment. He does not wish to be disturbed today."

"Listen, you little suck-up. Eustace owes me a shit-ton of money, and I'm not leaving until I have it. So why don't you do your job and let Eustace know I'm here?"

"I'm sorry Miss Quinlan. Wait one moment please."

A few moments later, Eustace came to the door. "You know, you are quite useless as a secretary. All I've asked is to not be disturbed today, and this is my second interruption in the last hour," Eustace huffed.

"My apologies, sir."

"Betty, darling! To what do I owe this pleasure?" Eustace greeted.

"Give me the money you owe me, Strych. I did my part, now you need to do yours," Betty said.

"All in good time my dear. Your part is still in process. Besides I should knock off a few thousand. I did your job for you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Neutron was just here, and I got the anthrax from him. If you recall, that was your only job."

"I got you whatever you inject Cindy with. Don't forget that."

"Yes, but that was like extra credit. I didn't know he had that."

"I did your dirty work. You owe me, Strych."

"Yes, but now I have what I want. I'll tell you what. I'm in a good mood. If you do one more thing for me I'll give you what you have coming to you," Eustace offered.

"Fine, what do you want?"

"Come, let's talk details," Eustace motioned for Betty to follow him. "Oh, secretary person? I'm sorry, I never bothered to learn your name, please come with me. I have a special job for you."

"My name is—"

"Not important, come along."

James walked out as soon as the door was closed. Eustace had put a lot of thought into this plan. He needed to figure it out, and fast.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Whoa, that was intense. I've got a bit of writer's block on the next part though. I have a general idea of where we're headed, but I'm stuck on the details.**

 **I'm so close to 50 followers, which is more than I could have hoped for. I'm fairly new to sharing my writing, and it makes me happy to see people enjoying my story. Once I reach 50 followers, I'll post another Jimmy Neutron story I wrote (which if we're being honest was the reason why it took me a while to post for this story, oops). This new story is VERY different than _Jimmy Neutron: Evil Genius._ It's not related at all. But still super fun!**

 **Check out my profile! _Betty's Backstory_ is posted as a hyperlink. Due to some formatting issues with the story, I couldn't post it as an actual story on the site.**

 **P.S. Yay, movie quotes!**

 **As always, let me know what you think.**


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